Rosselkhoznadzor justified the upcoming trade restrictions by claiming that recent audits revealed systemic traceability failures, unverified raw milk from smallholders, and the use of third-country inputs in high-fat dairy destined for the Russian market. Russian officials further asserted that Armenian regulatory oversight remains compromised following past administrative reforms, posing potential biosecurity risks to the Russian domestic market.

In response, the Armenian inspection agency clarified that all domestic dairy processing facilities are subjected to continuous oversight through annual inspection programs and consumer complaint investigations. The authority emphasized that under national food safety protocols, any facility committing health violations is immediately suspended, and non-compliant batches are confiscated and destroyed. According to submitted documentation, all raw milk streams utilized in exported products underwent verified laboratory testing and were certified safe.

Armenia also highlighted procedural inconsistencies on the Russian side, noting that Moscow announced the July 27 ban without formally providing the official findings of joint inspections conducted from July 14 to 21. During those joint audits—carried out by specialists from both Rosselkhoznadzor and the Armenian inspectorate across four major dairy plants—no violations concerning infected cattle milk or unauthorized imported raw materials were documented by the Armenian team.