Hong Kong's Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today that it has suspended poultry imports, including eggs, from two provinces in Korea.

The suspension, which impacts Cheonan-si of Chungcheongnam-do Province and Anseong-si of Gyeonggi-do Province respectively, is due to reported outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 and H5N6 avian influenza. CFS said the suspension is an effort to protect public health.

A CFS spokesperson said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 70 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 31.45 million poultry eggs from Korea last year.

"The CFS has contacted the Korean authority over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the World Organisation for Animal Health and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesperson said.