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The Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mrs Carrie Yau, today (March 20) led a delegation to visit the Guangdong Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau. Both sides discussed proposals to resume import of live poultry and birds supply from the province.
Mrs Yau said: "We have evaluated the current public health situation, including that no new human case and no outbreak of avian influenza have been found in Guangdong's farms, so the two sides agreed to set March 26 as our target date for the resumption of live poultry exports from Guangdong to Hong Kong and on March 27 to resume the sale of live poultry imports in our markets.
"The quantity of live chicken imports from the Mainland to Hong Kong upon resumption would be 20,000 per day. The two sides agree to review the arrangement in mid-April."
Regarding the arrangement for live chicken imports during festive periods, the Government would continue to handle it with flexibility, having regard to the then public health situation.
Mrs Yau also said the Government would reduce the total chicken population in local farms to 2 million by phases and the supply of day-old chicks from Guangdong would have to be adjusted as well. Upon the resumption of live poultry imports from Guangdong on March 26, the supply of day-old chicks to Hong Kong could also be resumed in principle. But the timing of the supply of day-old chicks was still awaiting evaluation, depending on the production capacity as well as inspection and quarantine arrangements.
Mrs Yau expressed thanks to the Director of Guangdong Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, Mr Zhong Dechang. She said she understood the bureau had all along been striving to safeguard the hygiene and safety of live food animals for supply to Hong Kong, including fielding staff to inspect registered farms and plants for supply to Hong Kong.
She hoped the two sides would continue the good cooperation to maintain the confidence of Hong Kong people in consuming live chickens.
Other delegation members included the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Mr Gregory Leung; the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation, Mrs Stella Hung; Deputy Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mr Eddy Chan; and Principal Assistant Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mr Wallace Lau.
Ends/Monday, March 20, 2006
Issued at HKT 14:23
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