Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Bans All Imports of Belgian Chicken, Duck, and Edible Eggs

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that, following the Belgian government's report of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) occurrence at a broiler farm, it has banned the import of Belgian poultry (chickens, ducks, birds, etc.) and edible eggs starting from the 27th to prevent the domestic inflow of HPAI.

The Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain confirmed HPAI (H5N5 type) at a broiler farm (one location) in Menen city, West Flanders province, near the French border, and announced quarantine measures including culling.

The import ban applies to ▲ live poultry (including pet birds and wild birds) ▲ day-old poultry chicks ▲ hatching eggs and edible eggs.

Imports of Belgian poultry and edible eggs were permitted starting October this year, but there have been no import records yet. Imports of poultry meat are already prohibited. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs stated that since HPAI has recently occurred in several countries including Europe and Japan, it will strengthen monitoring activities on overseas livestock disease outbreaks to prevent domestic inflow.