HK bans poultry product import from three regions

Hong Kong authorities announced Tuesday that they have banned the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from Whitley County in the United States, Nahouri Province in Burkina Faso and Balikesir Province in Turkey.

The Center for Food Safety (CFS) of Hong Kong's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said that in view of a notification from the U.S. authorities about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza in Whitley County in the state of Indiana, and notifications from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in the other two areas, they have banned the import of poultry meat and products from the three regions.

A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong imported about 267,000 tons of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 530 million poultry eggs from the U.S. last year.

However no poultry meat or poultry eggs were imported from Burkina Faso or Turkey in the same period."

The CFS has contacted the U.S., Burkina Faso and Turkish authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on avian influenza outbreaks in the three countries. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said. Endi