KIEV - The European Union has suspended imports of Ukrainian poultry meat and related products after Kiev reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic bird flu, the state food safety and consumer protection service said on Thursday.

The outbreak, the first such outbreak in nearly three years, was registered on a farm in the west-central part of the country. 

Ukraine is a major European poultry meat exporters.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; editing by Jason Neely) ((pavel.polityuk@tr.com; +380 44 2449150; Reuters Messaging: pavel.polityuk.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))