Chicken and other poultry are safe to eat if cooked properly, according to a joint statement by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) issued to national food safety authorities. However, no birds from flocks with disease should enter the food chain.

This statement was made to clarify food safety issues in relation to the current avian influenza crisis. The statement has been issued through the International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN).

In areas where there is no avian influenza outbreak in poultry, there is no risk that consumers will be exposed to the virus via the handling or consumption of poultry or poultry products.

Cooking of poultry (e.g. chicken, ducks, geese, turkeys and guinea-fowl) at or above 70°Celsius throughout the product, so that absolutely no meat remains raw and red, is a safe measure to kill the H5N1 virus in areas with outbreaks in poultry. This ensures that there is no active virus remaining if the live bird has been infected and has mistakenly entered the food chain. To date, there is no epidemiological evidence that people have become infected after eating contaminated poultry meat that has been properly cooked, informs a WHO release.

A large number of confirmed human cases of avian influenza acquired their infection during the home slaughtering and subsequent handling of diseased or dead birds prior to cooking. FAO and WHO emphasise that in the process of killing and preparing a live bird for food, slaughtering poses the greatest risk of passing the virus from infected or diseased birds to humans.

Most strains of avian influenza virus are mainly found in the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts of infected birds, and not in meat. However, highly pathogenic viruses, such as the H5N1 strain, spread to virtually all parts of an infected bird, including meat. Proper cooking at temperatures at or above 70°C in all parts of the product will inactivate the virus.

When a diseased bird is slaughtered, defeathered and eviscerated, virus from the bird can transfer to humans through direct contact. Infected poultry excrete virus in their secretions and faeces. Exposure might also occur when the virus is inhaled through dust and possibly through contact with surfaces contaminated with the virus, added the release.

In areas where marketing of live birds is common, the practices of home slaughtering, defeathering, and eviscerating increase the exposure to potentially contaminated parts of a chicken. These practices therefore result in a significant risk of infection in areas with outbreaks in poultry.

It is not always possible to differentiate infected and non-infected birds in outbreak areas. Some avian species, such as domestic ducks, may harbour the virus without displaying symptoms. Therefore, people need to be fully informed about preventive measures, including the use of protective equipment. The practice of slaughtering and eating infected birds, whether diseased or already dead, must be stopped, FAO and WHO warn. These birds should also not be used for animal feed.

The release further stated that even in areas or countries where outbreaks are currently occurring, the likelihood of infected poultry entering an industrialised slaughtering and processing chain, and eventually being marketed and handled by a consumer or a restaurant worker, is considered to be very low.

Proper vaccination of domestic poultry is considered to be a useful tool as part of an overall integrated strategy for the control of highly pathogenic avian influenza. It must be implemented in accordance with existing standards and procedures for vaccination. With appropriate monitoring programmes in place, vaccinated poultry can enter the food chain without particular risk for the consumer.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus can be found inside and on the surface of eggs laid by infected birds. Although sick birds will normally stop producing eggs, eggs laid in the early phase of the disease could contain viruses in the egg-white and yolk as well as on the surface of the shell.

Proper cooking inactivates the virus present inside the eggs. Pasteurisation used by industry for liquid egg products is also effective in inactivating the virus.

Eggs from areas with outbreaks in poultry should not be consumed raw or partially cooked (i.e., with runny yolk), advised WHO.