The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (November 1) that in view of a notification from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza in Kagawa Prefecture in Japan and notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Rural Municipality of Hoodoo No. 401 of Saskatchewan Province in Canada and Loiret Department, Côtes-d'Armor Department and Seine-et-Marne Department in France, 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 1 260 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 292.13 million poultry eggs from Japan, about 90 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Canada and about 670 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 150 000 poultry eggs from France in the first nine months of this year.

"The CFS has contacted the Japanese, Canadian and French 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.