Mainland China's poultry may be quarantined at border

Live poultry from the mainland might be kept at a site near the border until they are confirmed to be free of the bird flu virus to avoid cross-infection with local birds, the health minister said.


While all poultry are currently kept at the Cheung Sha Wan wholesale market while they wait for test results, this led to locally bred birds being culled with infected mainland poultry last week, prompting complaints of losses from local breeders and traders.


Two new cases of H7N9 were reported in Guangdong yesterday. One was a 63-year-old man in Shenzhen who died on Saturday; the other, a 37-year-old man in Zhongshan, was in critical condition. More than 270 H7N9 infections have been reported on the mainland since the virus emerged in March last year.


All live poultry trade including imports have been suspended in Hong Kong until February 18 after a poultry sample from Guangdong tested positive for H7N9 last Monday.