The European agriculture is taking the first hits against the spread of H7 avian influenza as the Hong Kong government has put the brakes on certain imports.
Hong Kong's Centre for Food Safety of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced this week that in view of the notifications from the World Organization for Animal Health about outbreaks of low-pathogenic H7 avian influenza on a game bird farm in Viborg Municipality, Denmark, and a poultry farm in Utrecht Province, the Netherlands, import of poultry and poultry products, including poultry eggs, from the two areas has been banned with immediate effect for the protection of Hong Kong's public and animal health.
A CFS spokesman said about 2,300 tons of frozen poultry meat and 78 000 poultry eggs from Denmark, and 17,000 tons of frozen poultry meat and 1.3 million poultry eggs from the Netherlands, were imported into Hong Kong last year.
"We have contacted the authorities in Denmark and the Netherlands over the matters and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on the avian influenza outbreaks in the two countries. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the developments of the situation," the spokesman said.
