MANILA, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines has indefinitely banned the importation of poultry and other poultry products from Belgium and France due to the outbreak of bird flu in the two European countries, the Philippines' Department of Agriculture said Tuesday.
Philippine Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the ban will immediately stop domesticated and wild birds from Belgium and France from entering the country.
Laurel said the indefinite import bans also prevent traders from bringing Belgian and French poultry products, including poultry meat, day-old chicks, hatching eggs, and poultry semen, into the Philippines starting Jan. 8, 2024.
Belgium and France, which share a border, reported their outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in domestic birds to the World Organization for Animal Health on Dec. 1, 2023, and Nov. 30, 2023, respectively.
"We are doing this to protect the health of our local poultry population as well as poultry workers and consumers since H5N1 is a virus that can be transmitted to humans by infected animals," Laurel said.
Laurel said meat imports already in transit, loaded or accepted before the ban will still be allowed to enter the country if the poultry were slaughtered or produced on or before Nov. 12, 2023, in the case of France, and Nov. 16, 2023, of Belgium.
All imports after the dates mentioned above will not be considered upon arrival in the country, except heat-treated products, he added. ■
