May 31, 2007

China urges EU to reopen market for cooked chicken imports

A senior Chinese food safety official has requested the European Commission (EC) to re-allow Chinese cooked chicken to enter European markets after a ban of nearly five years, state media reported.

Li Yuanping, director-general of the bureau of imports and exports food safety under the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, said that exporters of cooked chicken with the quarantine department have not reported any cases of bird flu, the official China Daily reported.

EC director-general for health and consumer protection Robert Madelin was quoted as saying at a news conference in Beijing last Tuesday that the commission will begin discussions with member states at the beginning of June to begin a process to open up trade, with a final decision likely to be made late in the year.