Jakarta – The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today that chicken, duck and quail, staples of the Indonesian diet, are safe to eat, if derived from healthy birds and properly cooked. The FAO concern comes as people stop eating poultry following a ban on raising poultry in Jakarta announced by the Governor of the province.

James McGrane, FAO team leader of the avian influenza control programme in Indonesia, said ”FAO is concerned about the impact that the citywide culling in Jakarta may have on the nutritional needs of the city’s residents. People should not abandon a valuable source of nutrition just because they have been forbidden to raise poultry of their own. Healthy poultry is perfectly safe if simple hygiene procedures are followed.”

Conventional cooking (temperatures at or above 70°C in all parts of a food item) will inactivate the H5N1 virus. FAO poultry experts advise people preparing poultry to follow good hygiene practices such as keeping tabletops and other utensils clean, hand washing and thorough cooking. Good hygiene practices should also be followed when handling or slaughtering birds and when carrying poultry home.

Poultry market crashes following ban

A few days after poultry keeping was banned in the city, demand for poultry products has plunged by as much as 50 percent, causing poultry markets in the capital to collapse, said Anni McLeod, FAO senior officer for livestock policy. “Controlling highly pathogenic avian influenza is difficult enough, without having to deal with the economic consequences of a market collapse, which affects the livelihoods of so many people.” The problem could be worsened if such bans became commonplace around the country without due planning.

FAO warned that the banning of backyard poultry or duck raising could lead to illegal poultry production.

McGrane said FAO strongly supports the recent initiatives by the Indonesian government and poultry industry to work together to provide safe poultry products for consumption and restore consumer confidence in poultry products, while tackling the disease at its source.

Press release issued by the office of the FAO Representative in Indonesia.