March 4, 2014

In view of a notification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of low- pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza, Hong Kong has banned the import of poultry and poultry products from Dronten of the Netherlands, Hong Kong's Centre for Food Safety announced.

A spokesman for the centre said about 18,000 tonnes of frozen poultry meat, 26 tonnes of chilled poultry meat and 14 million poultry eggs were imported into Hong Kong from the Netherlands last year.

Since December last year, an import ban on the same items from the Province of Groningen in the Netherlands has been in effect and it is still in force, it added.

The centre has contacted the Netherlands authorities over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on the bird flu outbreaks in the country. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation.