PIA stops serving chicken on flights

13 Feb, 2004

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) said on Thursday it had stopped serving chicken on board its flights in response to passengers' concerns over bird flu in the country.
"We have stopped serving chicken to our passengers from today (Thursday)," PIA Spokesman Imran Gardezi told AFP.
"We have reports from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and other experts that chicken is not injurious to human health, but despite the fact we banned it responding to the general perception of our travelling community," Gardezi said.
The airline previously used over two tonnes of chicken daily in its on board meals.
Pakistan last month reported outbreaks of the H7 and H9 strains of Avian influenza, which have killed over one million birds in poultry farms around Karachi.
Health authorities have said the strains are not harmful to humans.
There have been no reports of people becoming infected in Pakistan with bird flu so far, but the people are still refraining from consuming chicken after at least 19 people died of a more virulent strain in Vietnam and Thailand.
Retail chicken prices and sales have plummeted drastically here after bird flu was confirmed.

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