On January 9, 2023, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) announced a temporary restriction on the import of poultry and its products near the place where the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak occurred in Japan.

Due to the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5 in Gunma Prefecture and Chiba Prefecture of Japan, Singapore will impose temporary restrictions on the import of poultry and its products from affected areas. Poultry products heat-treated that meet the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) requirements for avian influenza virus inactivation will not be affected by the import restrictions.

In order to facilitate the customs clearance of other poultry and poultry products, when importing poultry and poultry products, the accompanying veterinary health certificate should also include the following additional certificates:

a. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and H5 and H7 Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (LPAI) are notifiable diseases in exporting countries.

b. According to the definition of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), meat-derived poultry have not been vaccinated against H5 and H7 subtypes of avian influenza.

c. Poultry meat and meat products not originating in Okayama, Kagawa, Ibaraki, Kagoshima, Niigata, Miyazaki, Aomori, Miyagi, Fukushima, Wakayama, Tottori, Aichi, Saga, Yamagata, Hiroshima, Okinawa, Saitama, Fukuoka, Nagasaki, Gunma and Chiba prefectures.

d. Poultry of meat origin is born, raised and slaughtered in Japan, or day-old chicks legally imported from countries with equivalent poultry health status.