Import of poultry meat and products from Lubartowski District of Lubelskie in Poland suspended

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (January 3) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza in the Lubartowski District of Lubelskie in Poland, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products, including poultry eggs, from the district with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong imported about 13 060 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and 23.2 million poultry eggs from Poland in the first nine months of last year, according to the Census and Statistics Department.

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