Russia has banned all U.S. meat imports claiming zero tolerance of the animal feed additive ractopamine. Ractopamine is used in 27 countries and has been proven safe at levels set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Codex Alimentarius Commission – an arm of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack stated that Russia’s failure to adopt the Codex standard raises questions about the country’s commitment to global trade and calls on Russia to abide by its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization.