Saudi Arabia’s Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) has banned the import of poultry and table eggs from 40 countries and imposed partial restrictions on certain regions in 16 other nations, as a precaution to protect public health and ensure food safety in the domestic market.
The authority said, “the list of affected countries is subject to regular review in line with global health developments and epidemiological updates,” as quoted by Gulf News.
According to the latest revision, some bans have been in place since 2004, while others were introduced gradually over the years based on risk assessments and international reports on animal diseases, especially outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza.
The updated list includes a full ban on imports from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Germany, Indonesia, Iran, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Bangladesh, Taiwan, Djibouti, South Africa, China, Iraq, Ghana, Palestine, Vietnam, Cambodia, Kazakhstan, Cameroon, South Korea, North Korea, Laos, Libya, Myanmar, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Mexico, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, India, Hong Kong, Japan, Burkina Faso, Sudan, Serbia, Slovenia, Côte d’Ivoire, and Montenegro.
Partial restrictions apply to specific states or cities in Australia, the United States, Italy, Belgium, Bhutan, Poland, Togo, Denmark, Romania, Zimbabwe, France, the Philippines, Canada, Malaysia, Austria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The authority clarified, “The temporary ban does not apply to heat-treated poultry meat and related products, provided they comply with approved health and safety standards.”
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