Poultry, Eggs Pose No Bird Flu Risk: EU

BRUSSELS — The European Union’s executive said on Wednesday consumers face no risk from eating poultry or eggs after demand for the products across the 25-nation bloc plummeted over fears that bird flu could spread through food.

The deadly H5N1 virus first surfaced in Asia but is being spread to the west by migrating birds.

"Veterinary controls on the farm and at slaughter, and the flow of information from stable to table, protect EU consumers against any potential risk," said European Commission spokesman Philip Tod.

"These import measures … ensure that poultry products on sale in the EU do not pose a risk for consumers," Tod told a briefing, saying poultry imports were banned from areas where high pathogenic avian influenza has been detected in poultry.

The EU produces 11 million tonnes of poultry meat a year and exports 1 million tonnes. Exports were worth 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) in 2004. The sector employs more than 500,000 people.

Tod’s comments came a day after an official at the European Union’s food safety agency was quoted as saying he could not rule out that the virus could spread through food.

In an update to its recommendations, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) played down comments by its science director Herman Koeter, saying there was no evidence to suggest that bird flu can be transmitted through poultry or eggs.

But EFSA said in a statement that consumers were still advised to cook eggs and poultry thoroughly.

"While it is unlikely that H5N1 could be passed on to humans by raw meat or eggs, cooking food properly would inactivate the virus and eliminate this potential risk," it said.

Last week a farm union in Italy reported a 30 percent fall in demand and the French government has sought to reassure consumers that poultry meat was safe as sales fell.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu dangerous to humans has been detected in several European countries but not in commercial poultry within the European Union.

Tod said he had no data on the fall in sales but acknowledged it was a source of concern to EU ministers.

"Of course we have seen … falls in the consumption of poultry products in the EU," he said. "This concern is shared by the Commission."

He said controls meant there was no risk of contracting avian flu even from eating raw eggs although there was a risk of other illness, such as food poisoning.

"We wouldn’t advise everybody to eat raw eggs. We don’t think there’s a risk of avian flu from the consumption of eggs whether raw or cooked," he said.