Russia's food safety watchdog has intercepted and destroyed a large load of U.S. almonds allegedly smuggled into the country by a Kazakh citizen.

The U.S. is one of several countries that have faced countersanctions on foodstuff exports to Russia since August, 2014.

In an announcement yesterday, the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) said the seizure was made on July 17 following a tip-off border guards in conjunction with the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The seizure took place near the village of Mashtakov in the district of Pervomaisky in the Orenburg region, with 880 unlabeled bags full of almonds found inside a truck.

Authorities accompanied the vehicle to a landfill in Buzuluk, where the almonds were destroyed as part of a decree aimed at deterring traders from skirting the import ban.

If the same volume of 20 metric tons (MT) were to be sold at current prices listed at Costco Wholesale in the U.S., they would have been worth US$543,800.

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