The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (December 17) that in view of notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of Korea respectively about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza in Astrakhanskaya Oblast in Russia and Imsil-gun of Jeollabuk-do Province, Cheonan-si of Chungcheongnam-do Province and Gumi-si of Gyeongsangbuk-do Province of Korea, and the notification from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza in Kochi Prefecture of 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 Hong Kong has currently established a protocol with Russia for the import of poultry meat but not for poultry eggs. According to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 142 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Russia in the first nine months of this year; about 50 tonnes of chilled poultry meat, about 4 300 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 200 million poultry eggs from Japan; and about 740 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 8.9 million poultry eggs from Korea.
     
     "The CFS has contacted the Russian, Japanese and Korean authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE 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.

Ends/Thursday, December 17, 2020
Issued at HKT 17:20

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