Gov’t allows poultry imports from Hungary

The Department of Agriculture (DA) has lifted the temporary ban on the importation of poultry from Hungary after its government recently reported bird flu-free status as confirmed by the Organization for Animal Health. In a memorandum order, the DA said it would now allow the importation of domestic and wild birds and their products including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen from Hungary after the trade was suspended due to reported cases of avian influenza.

The Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) said the risk of contamination from Hungary was now considered “negligible.”

Meanwhile, new bans were imposed on France, Netherlands, Denmark, Japan and the United Kingdom after these countries reported bird flu outbreaks.

The processing, application and evaluation of import permits from these countries would also be suspended.

Similarly, temporary suspensions imposed on Australia, Brazil, Germany, Romania, Saudia Arabia, Slovakia, Poland, Ukraine and the United States would remain.

Nonetheless, the country’s chicken imports continued to grow over the 10-month period, based on data from BAI.

Chicken imports rose by 30 percent to 347,561 metric tons while chicken mechanically deboned meat—used for manufacturing processed products – also increased by 31 percent. INQ