HONG KONG, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's food safety authority decided on Thursday to suspend the import of poultry meat and products from Maine-et-Loire Department in France due to the bird flu outbreak in the region.
The Center for Food Safety (CFS) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products, including poultry eggs, from this area with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.
A CFS spokesperson said it was in view of notifications from the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in this area.
The CFS has contacted the French authority over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreak. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation, the spokesperson said. ■
