United States Senator Charles Schumer has urgently called on Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak to expedite paperwork so that Team USA, along with many hungry NBC employees stationed in Sochi, can start enjoying what must be a massive shipment of delicious Chobani. Right now, Schumer says, the yogurt is sitting in storage at Newark International Airport because the Russian Federation’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance has not yet given the green light for the product to clear customs. The USDA has signed off on a “sanitary certificate” that states the yogurt meets Russia’s food-safety standards, however, and regardless, it’s being consumed only by Americans. ”With the Sochi Olympic Games starting at the end of this week, there is simply no time to waste in getting our Olympic athletes and employees a nutritious and delicious breakfast – Chobani Greek Yogurt,” Schumer said in a statement first reported by the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. In his letter to Ambassador Kislyak, Senator Schumer emphasizes that the yogurt care-package is a one-time shipment, and reiterates that only U.S. citizens will get to eat it. The amount of yogurt being held at the New Jersey airport has not been disclosed, but considering that the United States has 230 athletes competing in Sochi, and other personnel, such as coaches and trainers — not to mention the television network’s staff — that number increases significantly, and it is likely that many thousands of peach- and blackberry-flavored containers are just stranded in Newark. more
