The Russian bears are hungry: Animals at Moscow Zoo starving under sanctions on food trade imposed by Kremlin



Keepers are urgently seeking to replace imported meat, fish, fruit and vegetables

Almost all of the products that animals eat at Moscow Zoo are imported

The zoo's bears have a passion for Polish apples which are now banned

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev this week announced a wide-ranging embargo on most food imports from the EU, the US, Australia and Canada

There is growing anger over the sanctions which have hit the animals



Animals at Moscow Zoo are suffering over Russia's new trade sanctions on the West which bans many foods from being imported.



Keepers are urgently seeking to replace imported meat, fish, fruit and vegetables on which the animals depend.



For example, the zoo's brown bears - creatures seen as the symbol of Russian virility - have a secret passion for Polish apples, which are now banned.



No food: The zoo's brown bears have a passion for Polish apples, which are now banned

Zoo official Sergey Kapkov, admitted: 'We are looking for an alternative to imported fruit. The inhabitants of Moscow Zoo eat more than 100 kilograms a day.'



There is anger that while food for babies have been exempted from the tit-for-tat sanctions list unveiled by Vladimir Putin's government, animal foods enjoy no such waiver.



Moscow Zoo spokeswoman Anna Kachurovskaya said: 'Almost all of the products that animals consume at Moscow Zoo are imported.

'The main imported foods are fruits and vegetables.'



She complained: 'A lot of the animals eat apples and we bought Polish apples which were of good quality and inexpensive. '



Penguins: A spokeswoman for Moscow Zoo said almost all of the products that animals consume are imported

Feeding time: A northern fur seal eats a fish, left, and a gorilla, right, has a mouthful of carrots, Russia's drastic ban on food imports from Europe has claimed it first victims -- the animals at Moscow zoo

She insisted that 'imported products are cheaper than domestic, and some products are rare in Russia or even not available at all.'



There was surprise yesterday at the zoo's blunt attack on government policy amid an officially-inspired PR campaign to claim the move will act as a key incentive to upgrade Russia's domestic food production.



However, the Russian curbs pose an immediate headache to zoo keepers.



'We cannot stop feeding the animals because of the sanctions,' said Ms Kachurovskaya.



'We are now actively coming up with new schemes for the purchases of products. We try to enter into contracts with new suppliers.



Sanctions: Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announced a wide-ranging embargo on most food imports from the EU, the US, Australia and Canada

'The problem, however, is not so easy to solve, because some of the animals are not ready to change the suppliers.



'Some species have special 'geographical' preferences.'



For example Russia imports whole fish caught off South America - the only kind that the zoo's penguins will eat.



'Some animals that eat the giblets will not eat those from our domestic market, and we cannot explain this preference.



' We hope that the government will find a way to help. Baby food was not banned - are animals worse than children?'



Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev this week announced a wide-ranging embargo on most food imports from the EU, the US, Australia and Canada.



Imports of beef, pork, fruit and vegetable produce, poultry, fish, cheese, milk and dairy products are banned from these Western countries.



The moves were in response to Western sanctions imposed on Putin's government over the Kremlin's policies on Ukraine.

