The Centre for Food Safety today suspended the import of poultry meat, poultry products and eggs from Tarnogórski District of Śląskie Region in Poland and Akita Prefecture in Japan.

It issued the ban in response to notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries of Japan about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 and H5 avian influenza in the two places.

The centre has contacted the Polish and Japanese authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information from the organisation and the relevant authorities on the outbreaks.

In the first nine months of this year, about 4,070 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and 24.82 million poultry eggs were imported from Poland and about 40 tonnes of chilled poultry meat, 2,530 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and 210.28 million poultry eggs were imported from Japan.