Hong Kong Shuts the Door on Malaysian Poultry, Thanks to a Bird‑Flu Rush
Word’s got to the smokescreen: Hong Kong’s got a new rule—no chicken, eggs, or even a single frozen bite from Tuaran District in Sabah, eastern Malaysia. The Centre for Food Safety dropped the memo on Tuesday (August 7), throwing a big red X on imports that were once a staple on the city’s Mezzanine.
Why the Stop‑Shop?
- H5N1 alert: Malaysia’s “hot spot” in Sabah caught a feathery infection, sparking a tidy scare.
- Fifty‑fifty quick stats: Before the pause, Hong Kong was hauling about 100 tonnes of frozen poultry meat and a whopping 190 million eggs from the spot.
- Big picture‑meal check: In 2017, the city guzzled a mind‑blowing 298,000 tonnes of poultry meat (USDA data).
What’s the Next Move?
With the World Organisation for Animal Health officially confirming the outbreak, HK is in a holding pattern. A (yet) undisclosed duration oversees the import ban, leaving locals wondering whether their next “egg‑cited” breakfast will come from the city’s own backyard or a new, bird‑fluent source.
