Thai poultry imports will be off supermarket shelves in the European Union for at least five months, the European Commission said on Monday, dampening any hope in Bangkok for a quick end to the crisis.
The 15-nation bloc banned imports of fresh and frozen poultry from Thailand on Friday following an outbreak of the highly contagious bird flu in the country. One Thai person has died from the virus and millions of chickens are being killed.
Many EU states feel Bangkok tried to cover up the crisis, which has also struck in Taiwan, Japan, South
Korea, Vietnam, Pakistan, Indonesia and Cambodia, and cannot be relied on to properly fight the virus, officials said.
Commission's Health and Consumer Protection spokeswoman Beate Gminder said Thai poultry imports would be banned for at least five months, if not longer, given the outbreak's scale.
"An independent verification of measures taken by Thai authorities to eradicate the disease has to take place (before lifting the ban)," she told a news conference.
"Reliance on Thai assurances is not the best way forward."
EU veterinary experts will meet on February 2-3 to discuss the situation with input from Thai authorities.
The EU is a highly lucrative market for Thailand's chicken exporters, their number two destination after Japan.