Hong Kong authorities announced Tuesday that it has banned the import of poultry meat and products including poultry eggs from Hamerkaz District of Israel and Hampshire County of Britain because of avian influenza.

In view of a notification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Hamerkaz District of Israel and low pathogenic H7 avian influenza in Hampshire County, it has banned the import of poultry meat and products from the area concerned with immediate effect for the protection of Hong Kong's public health, announced the Center for Food Safety (CFS) of Hong Kong's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.

About 18,000 tones of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 7.2 million poultry eggs were imported into Hong Kong from Britain while there was no poultry meat or poultry eggs imported from Israel last year, according to the CFS.

The CFS has contacted the Israeli and British authorities concerned over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE on avian influenza outbreaks, said the CFS.

Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation, the CFS said.