February 10, 2004

Poland Bans US Poultry Imports On Bird Flu Fears

Poland joined some Asian countries in introducing a ban on imports of live poultry, eggs and poultry meat and products from the U.S., following the outbreak of avian influenza at a farm in Delaware, the agriculture ministry said Monday.

The ban will go into effect at midnight (2300 GMT) Monday and covers all domestic birds and ostriches, said a communique by the ministry's chief veterinarian Piotr Kolodziej.

Last month, Poland banned poultry imports from Thailand and Vietnam, where at least 19 people have died from bird influenza. That ban is still in effect.

Japan, Singapore and South Korea have banned U.S. poultry imports, while Hong Kong and Malaysia banned the import of live birds and poultry from Delaware only.

Experts in the U.S. say there is no threat to human health from the flu strain found in Delaware last week, because it is different from the one that has spread to the human population in Asia.