The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (November 25) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of low pathogenic H5 avian influenza in the Province of Pavia, Region of Lombardy in Italy, and a notification from the Japanese authorities about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza in Fukuoka Prefecture in Japan, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong imported about 1,400 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and 14,000 poultry eggs from Italy, and about 50 tonnes of chilled poultry meat, about 4,300 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 200 million poultry eggs from Japan in the first nine months of this year, according to the Census and Statistics Department.

     "The CFS has contacted the Italian and Japanese authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.

Ends/Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Issued at HKT 16:35

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