The Russian consumer rights watchdog Rospotrebnadzor has denied reports that the country's retail chains were asked to stop selling Ukrainian and Belarusian salt.

"We can only say that there is no such ban," Rospotrebnadzor spokesperson Anna Sergeyeva told Interfax on Tuesday.

The Kommersant newspaper reported on Tuesday that the consumer rights watchdog had recommended that Russian retail chains remove salt exported by major Ukrainian and Belarusian producers, which account for 56% of the Russian salt market, from its store shelves. Russian companies whose manufacturing capacity remains idle by 40% today are ready to replace them. Ten years ago, rumors alone concerning a possible halt to salt deliveries from Ukraine were enough to send salt prices in Russia 90% higher, the newspaper said.