Chances of catching bird flu from cooked chicken ‘negligible’

THE threat to public health from bird flu through eating cooked chicken is negligible, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland said yesterday.

It said a European Commission ban on poultry products from Thailand was imposed mainly because of animal health and environmental concerns Ireland, which took similar steps, directly imported 1,200 tonnes of chicken from Thailand in 2002.

No live flocks of chicken or hatching eggs are imported into Ireland or the EU from countries in the Far East where the bird flu is spreading. The key source of human infection is direct contact with infected birds.