* Russia, China ban pork imports from Mexico, U.S. * Six countries also slap on bans from some parts of U.S. * WHO says no danger of swine flu from contact with pork * Russia ban also affects U.S. beef, poultry * Producers worried about hit to consumer demand (Adds comments from Mexico trade group, U.S. pork group, information about impact on U.S. beef and poultry) By Jonathan Lynn GENEVA, April 27 (Reuters) - Outbreaks of swine flu have prompted several countries to ban the import of pork, raising the prospect the disease will add a further protectionist blow to sagging world trade. International trade rules allow countries to restrict or ban imports for health and safety reasons -- but this has to be based on scientific evidence. The World Health Organization says swine flu does not spread by eating infected pork. "It's not supposed to be an unjustifiable barrier to trade," Stuart Harbinson, senior trade policy advisor at law firm Winston & Strawn and former chairman of agriculture negotiations at the World Trade Organization, told Reuters. Health authorities put customs officers after the outbreak killed as many as 149 people in Mexico and made others sick in the United States, Canada and Europe. [ID:nN27484099] The flu has components of classic avian, human and swine flu viruses but has not actually been seen in pigs, leading the world animal health body OIE to say the disease should not be called swine flu [ID:nLR478786] Six countries -- China, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates -- have banned meat and pork products from some parts of the United States in the wake of the swine flu scare, the U.S. Trade Representative's office said. [ID:nWAT011359] "Restrictions on U.S. pork or pork products or any meat products from the United States resulting from the recent outbreak do not appear to be based on scientific evidence and may result in serious trade disruptions without cause," the USTR's office said in a statement. Meanwhile, USTR said the United States was not considering any bans or trade restrictions on meat from Mexico. Russia banned imports of all meat -- including beef and poultry -- not treated thermally from Mexico, Texas, California and Kansas, and raw pork imports from eight other U.S. states, Central America and the Caribbean. [ID:nLQ600185] China, the world's largest pork consumer, also banned imports of live pigs and pork products from Mexico, Texas, California and Kansas. [ID:nPEK2499] Serbia also banned pork from all of North America, said Joe Schuele, a spokesman for the U.S. Meat Export Federation. Some of the markets are not large importers of U.S. pork, but the trend is concerning, Schuele said. "There may be a certain follow-the-leader mentality," he said. "It tells us that sound science is not prevailing." For Russia, a major market for U.S. meat, exporters of pork and chicken exporters can still ship from unaffected states. But officials were worried about the impact on beef exports from the key beef states of Kansas and Texas, Schuele said. Exporters have also seen increased inspections of shipments, which could slow trade, Schuele said. Mexico, a net pork importer, will not be hurt by bans announced to date since it sends the bulk of its export to Japan and South Korea, said Enrique Dominguez, head of the country's pork producers' association. [ID:nN27335] Pork producers in both countries said they were worried consumer demand for pork could slide because of misplaced fears about safety of the meat. "It's not just the restrictions, it's not just government policies. It's consumers, in the U.S. and worldwide," said Nick Giordano, a vice president of the National Pork Producers Council. Grain and meat futures market were hit hard on Monday, as were the shares of large meat companies. [ID:nN27526600] (For more stories on swine flu, click on [nFLU]) (For WHO information on swine flu, go to: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html ) (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton in Washington; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
A woman wears a mask as she prays at Mexico City's Metropolitan Cathedral April 27, 2009. A new virus has killed up to 149 people in Mexico and the World Health ...
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