Import of Poultry Meat and Poultry Products Suspended in Poland, France and Some Parts of the United Kingdom

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department of Hong Kong announced on March 8 that in response to the notification by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) of an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in the Kraków District of Małopolskie Province in Poland and in the Loire, Mann-Loire and Deux-Sèvres Provinces on the Atlantic coast of France, the OIE and the British Consulate General in.

Hong Kong Consulate General respectively, that the United Kingdom Suffolk Central Suffolk District and Lincolnshire North East Lincolnshire outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza.

And the extension of the restricted area to the Lincolnshire West Lindsay District, the Centre immediately instructed the industry to suspend the import of poultry meat and poultry products (including eggs) in the above areas to protect public health in Hong Kong. 

　　

A spokesman for the Centre said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 4,460 metric tons of chilled poultry meat and about 30.2 million eggs from Poland last year, about 60 metric tons of chilled poultry meat, about 4,710 metric tons of chilled poultry meat and about 240,000 eggs from France, and about 90 metric tons of chilled poultry meat, about 3,700,700 metric tons of chilled poultry meat and about 320,000 eggs from the United Kingdom.

　

The spokesman said, "The Centre has contacted the authorities of Poland, France and the United Kingdom on the incident and will continue to closely monitor the news of the outbreak of avian influenza issued by the World Organization for Animal Health and relevant authorities and take appropriate actions in response to the development of the epidemic in the region.