Import of poultry meat and products from areas in Germany, Poland, UK, Canada and Japan suspended

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (December 30) that in view of notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Hamm of the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany, Kalisz District of Wielkopolskie Region in Poland, Tewkesbury District of Gloucestershire County in the United Kingdom (UK) and Perth County of the province of Ontario in Canada, and an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Saitama Prefecture in Japan respectively, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned areas, as well as from Unna District of the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen adjacent to Hamm, with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, in the first nine months of this year, while no poultry meat or eggs were imported into Hong Kong from Canada, Hong Kong imported about 60 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Germany; about 1 870 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Poland; about 770 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 1.17 million poultry eggs from the UK; and about 1 540 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and about 219.73 million poultry eggs from Japan.

     “The CFS has contacted the German, Polish, British, Canadian and Japanese authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation,” the spokesman said.

Ends/Tuesday, December 30, 2025

Issued at HKT 19:10

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