Hong Kong Halts Poultry and Egg Imports from Rogaland and Scottish Borders

Hong Kong stopped poultry and egg imports from Norway’s Rogaland and the Scottish Borders from Nov. 5, 2026, over bird flu.

Hong Kong’s Centre for Food Safety stopped poultry meat and egg imports from Norway’s Rogaland and the Scottish Borders on Nov. 5, 2026.

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) is part of Hong Kong’s Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. It acted after reports of bird flu outbreaks in both areas, and the halt took immediate effect¹.

In short, poultry meat, poultry products and eggs from these two areas can no longer enter Hong Kong. Shipments from other parts of Norway and the United Kingdom (UK) are not named in the order.

Why did Hong Kong stop poultry from Rogaland and the Scottish Borders?

The CFS acted on notifications from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). WOAH is the intergovernmental body that tracks animal diseases around the world¹.

The notifications reported outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza. This is a severe form of bird flu that spreads fast among poultry¹. One outbreak was in Rogaland County in Norway. The other was in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland in the UK².

The CFS said it took the step to protect public health in Hong Kong¹. The announcement was issued on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, and was also published on the Hong Kong government’s press release site².

Which poultry goods does the suspension cover?

The order covers poultry meat and products, including poultry eggs¹. It applies only to goods from the two named areas, not to the whole of either country.

In practice, this means the following goods from Rogaland and the Scottish Borders are stopped:

• Poultry meat, whether chilled or frozen.
• Poultry products from the two areas.
• Poultry eggs, which the CFS names on purpose so there is no doubt they are included.

The CFS press release does not list customs codes or exemptions. It does not say whether cooked or heat-treated goods are treated differently.

How does the order work at the border?

The CFS "instructed the trade" to suspend imports from the two areas¹. This means importers must stop bringing in these goods straight away.

Hong Kong already controls these imports closely. Under the Imported Game, Meat, Poultry and Eggs Regulations, meat, poultry and eggs must arrive with a health certificate³. This certificate must come from an issuing body in the place of origin that Hong Kong’s food authority recognises⁴.

For this to work, Hong Kong and the place of origin must first agree an import protocol. This is a set of agreed health checks and certificate forms⁴. As part of that agreement, the exporting country gives Hong Kong details of its animal disease situation⁴.

Shipments then enter through set checkpoints. By land, they enter through Man Kam To or the Hong Kong Port of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. By air, they enter through Hong Kong International Airport⁴.

At these points, the food authority may inspect or take samples from the goods. If the results are satisfactory, it issues a "release letter" to the importer⁴.

What papers do poultry shipments into Hong Kong need?

Even outside a suspension, poultry and eggs face several rules. The CFS guide for importers and the regulations set out the main papers and steps:

• Health certificate from a recognised issuing body in the place of origin³.
• Transhipment certificate when meat, poultry or eggs pass through another place on the way³.
• Written permission from a health officer for egg imports, on top of the certificate³.
• Import licence for frozen or chilled poultry, issued by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department⁴.

Importers of food must also register with the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene. This rule comes from the Food Safety Ordinance, which took full effect on 1 February 2012⁴.

A recognised certificate does not help shipments from Rogaland or the Scottish Borders now. The CFS order stops these goods whatever papers they carry¹.

How much poultry does Hong Kong buy from Norway and the UK?

The CFS gave trade figures from Hong Kong’s Census and Statistics Department. They cover the first nine months of 2026¹.

In that time, Hong Kong imported about 20 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Norway¹. From the UK, it imported about 680 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat². It also imported about 220,000 poultry eggs from the UK¹.

These figures cover each whole country, not only the two suspended areas. The CFS did not say how much came from Rogaland or the Scottish Borders.

Two weeks earlier, the CFS gave a smaller UK figure for a shorter period. In its Oct. 21 notice, it said Hong Kong imported about 340 tonnes of UK poultry meat in the first six months of 2026⁵.

Can Norwegian eggs reach Hong Kong at all?

The CFS said Hong Kong has an import protocol with Norway for poultry meat. It does not have one for poultry eggs¹.

This matters because each meat, poultry or egg shipment needs a health certificate under an agreed protocol⁴. Without an egg protocol, Norway has no agreed path for egg shipments to Hong Kong.

So for Norway, the new order mainly hits frozen poultry meat from Rogaland. For the UK, it hits meat and eggs from the Scottish Borders.

Who is affected by the Rogaland and Scottish Borders halt?

Several groups feel the change:

• Hong Kong importers must stop ordering and bringing in poultry, poultry products and eggs from the two areas¹.
• Poultry farms and plants in the two areas lose access to the Hong Kong market while the order stands.
• Shippers with goods already on the way face the risk that customs will hold them at the border.
• Buyers in Hong Kong such as restaurants and shops may need other sources for UK or Norwegian poultry.

Breaking the import rules carries penalties. Importing meat, poultry or eggs outside the regulations is an offence. On conviction, the penalty is a fine at level 5 and 6 months’ prison³.

Has Hong Kong stopped UK poultry before?

Yes. The CFS has suspended poultry from many UK areas in 2026 as bird flu cases appeared.

On Oct. 21, 2026, it stopped poultry meat and products, including eggs, from North Northumberland in Northumberland County, England⁵. That order also followed a WOAH report of H5N1 bird flu⁵.

The Scottish Borders has been on the list before. On July 6, 2026, the CFS said it had lifted earlier halts on more than 40 UK counties and districts⁶. The Scottish Borders was among them, and that lifting took effect from 3 July 2026⁶.

The CFS said the bird flu incidents in those areas had been "resolved"⁶. The new order puts the Scottish Borders back under a ban about four months later.

When could the Norway and UK poultry ban end?

The CFS gave no end date. It said it has contacted the Norwegian and British authorities about the outbreaks¹.

It will also watch information from WOAH and the authorities in the two countries. It said "appropriate action will be taken" as the situation develops².

The July lifting shows how a halt can end. There, the CFS lifted the order once the outbreaks were resolved and published a notice for importers⁶. Until a similar notice appears, goods from the two areas stay out.

Key points on the Hong Kong poultry suspension

The main facts of the Nov. 5 order are below.

The order has no end date. Poultry, poultry products and eggs from Rogaland and the Scottish Borders stay out of Hong Kong until the CFS publishes a notice lifting the halt¹.

Sources

1. ↩ Press Release – Import of poultry meat and products from areas in Norway and UK suspended https://www.cfs.gov.hk/english/press/20261105_12714.html
2. ↩ Import of poultry meat and products from areas in Norway and UK suspended https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202611/05/P2026110500460.htm
3. ↩ Cap. 132AK Imported Game, Meat, Poultry and Eggs Regulations https://www.elegislation.gov.hk/hk/cap132AK
4. ↩ Guide to Import of Game, Meat, Poultry and Eggs into Hong Kong https://www.cfs.gov.hk/english/import/import_icfsg_04.html
5. ↩ Press Release – Import of poultry meat and products from North Northumberland of Northumberland County in UK suspended https://www.cfs.gov.hk/english/press/20261021_12680.html
6. ↩ News_for_Importers_and_Trade_20260706_e.pdf https://www.cfs.gov.hk/english/import/files/News_for_Importers_and_Trade_20260706_e.pdf