The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (March 28) that in view of a notification from the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Aberdeenshire of Scotland and East Suffolk District of Suffolk County of England in the United Kingdom (UK), and a notification from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza in Miyagi Prefecture in Japan, 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 90 tonnes of chilled poultry meat, about 3 770 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 320 000 poultry eggs from the UK, and about 40 tonnes of chilled poultry meat, about 3 240 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 286.19 million poultry eggs from Japan last year.

"The CFS has contacted the British and Japanese authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the World Organisation for Animal Health 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.