HK bans import of poultry products from Germany

Import of all poultry and poultry products, including poultry eggs, from the states of Brandenburg and Berlin of Germany, has been banned with immediate effect for the protection of Hong Kong's public and animal health, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced Tuesday.

The CFS said that Hong Kong bans the import of all poultry and poultry products in view of a notification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of low pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in the northeastern part of Germany.

The CFS has banned the import of all poultry and poultry products, including poultry eggs, from another state of Germany, Schleswig-Holstein, since Dec. 22 last year due to an outbreak of avian influenza H5.

A CFS spokesman said about 10,000 tonnes of frozen and chilled poultry meat, as well as about 2.8 million poultry eggs, were imported into Hong Kong from Germany last year.

"We have contacted the German authorities over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on the avian influenza outbreaks in Germany. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.