Import of poultry meat and products from areas in Belgium and France suspended

     â€‹The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (November 30) that in view of notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N5 avian influenza in West-Vlaanderen Province in Belgium and outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N8 in Corse-du-Sud Department and Yvelines Department in France, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong imported about 1,450 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Belgium, and about 8,740 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 1.1 million poultry eggs from France in the first nine months of this year, according to the Census and Statistics Department.

     "The CFS has contacted the Belgian and French authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.