Import of poultry meat and products from areas in Germany and Poland suspended

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (December 15) that in view of notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Celle District in the State of Niedersachsen in Germany and Zgierski District of Å�ódzkie Region in Poland, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 430 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 800 000 poultry eggs from Germany, and about 4 070 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 24.82 million poultry eggs from Poland, in the first nine months of this year.

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