The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (November 20) that in view of notifications from the General Veterinary Inspectorate of Poland and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the Lubartowski District of Lubelskie Region in Poland, and outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5 and H5N1 avian influenza in the Province of Gelderland in the Netherlands and Cornwall District of Cornwall County in the United Kingdom (UK) respectively, 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 3,480 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Poland, about 1,910 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from the Netherlands, and about 900 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 990,000 poultry eggs from the UK in the first nine months of this year.

"The CFS has contacted the Polish, Dutch and British authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH 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.