Japan and Hong Kong have suspended imports of Australian poultry products, including meat and eggs, following an outbreak of low pathogenic avian influenza on a duck farm in Victoria.
Japanese food safety authorities have ordered further testing, after two cows were diagnosed with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) during preliminary screening, Tom Armitage reports.
Following the failure of the World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference in Cancún, Mexico, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder issued an appeal to all parties concerned to resume talks as soon as possible.
The European Union is to reduce testing of imported Thai poultry for cancer-causing drugs, claiming that improved checks on chicken meat products have eased food safety fears.
The Sars outbreak in Asia has had far-reaching implications for a number of industries. China, one of the worst-hit countries, has seen a sharp decline in the export of many goods and products, not least livestock.
