HONG KONG, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- The food safety authority of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) announced on Friday the suspension of import of poultry products from Long An Province of Vietnam.

In view of a notification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Long An Province, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) of the HKSAR government's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said it had suspended the import of poultry meat and products, including poultry eggs, from the province with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

At present, Hong Kong has an established protocol with Vietnam for the import of poultry eggs but not for poultry meat, a CFS spokesman said, adding that Hong Kong imported 650,000 poultry eggs from Vietnam in the first nine months of last year.

"The CFS has contacted the Vietnamese authorities over the issue and will closely monitor the information issued by the OIE on avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.