The United States has decided to suspend imports of meat products from France after US experts found food safety measures in the country were not up to standard, the French agriculture ministry said Tuesday.
It said the US move, which will affect foie gras and sausages among other products, followed a visit by a team from the US agriculture ministry team to 11 companies allowed to export to the United States as well as to the local veterinary services that supervise them.
It said the US experts had noted "non-conformities" in French health protection measures during the trip from January 15 to February 5, the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry emphasised that France "does not share" the US conclusions.
"Food safety measures have never been questioned by the relevant regional heads of veterinary services who took part in these inspections," the statement said.