Under an agreement between the Mainland and Hong Kong, all imported chickens from the Mainland must be vaccinated against H5 avian influenza (commonly known as bird flu). In addition, veterinarians from the FEHD will pay regular visits to the registered Mainland farms that export poultry and to exchange information with Mainland authorities to ensure that all Mainland farms that export poultry are up to standard.

To prevent virus accumulating in retail outlets, the FEHD requires fresh provision shops (FPS) and market stall operators selling live poultry to observe a 'two rest days per month' rule. Before commencement of the rest days, all live poultry at these outlets have to be slaughtered. Thereafter, the operators are required to thoroughly cleanse and disinfect the stalls.

Apart from the above, FPS and market stall operators selling live poultry are required to observe other conditions such as wearing protective clothing at work, reporting dead poultry to FEHD staff once detected, no overstocking of live poultry and reducing the risk of direct contact between humans and live poultry by requiring cages facing customers to be affixed with acrylic panels. It is also the responsibility of the operators not to allow customers to touch live poultry.

The FEHD conducted an exercise in December 2006 to test and assess the department's readiness should there be a need to carry out large-scale culling of live poultry in Hong Kong.

To reduce the number of live poultry retail outlets, the Government in July 2004 introduced a voluntary scheme to encourage live poultry retailers to surrender their FPS licences or stall tenancies in FEHD public markets for an ex gratia payment. A total of 333 live poultry retailers surrendered their licences or terminated their stall tenancies under the scheme which ended in August 2006.

During the year, the AFCD suspended temporarily the importation of live birds from a number of countries, including Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, North Korea, Russia, Kazakhstan and Cote D'Ivoire following reports of avian flu outbreaks in those countries. The restrictions will be lifted when conditions imposed by the World Organisation for Animal Health are met. Import protocols were introduced for the importation of live birds from the Mainland, subject to their being vaccinated or having proper health certificates.

All live birds shipped to Hong Kong have to be tested for avian influenza before being exported. Birds imported from countries that are located near affected ones, are placed in quarantine and examined before being released.

Hong Kong continued to observe strict rules in 2006 to protect humans, local poultry farms, wholesale and retail markets from avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu. The measures included stepped-up monitoring of biosecurity in farms and markets, universal vaccination of chickens against the disease and intensive surveillance of all birds entering, or already, in Hong Kong.

Blood samples and faecal swabs are collected on a regular basis from healthy, sick or dead birds in poultry farms, wholesale and retail poultry markets, as well as birds kept in recreation parks, pet shops, and wild birds in wetlands, country parks and elsewhere, and examined to see if they contain the virus. PCR testing, a rapid real-time method is used to speed up detection of the H5N1 virus. Since October 2005, the Government has provided a round-the-clock service for receiving birds brought in for examination, regardless of whether they are dead, or in a weak state.

In 2006, some 10 000 wild birds were tested under the programme. Fifteen dead wild birds and two abandoned chickens of unknown origin were found to have the H5N1 virus. But there were no outbreaks of the disease in local poultry farms or markets.

In addition, the Government introduced legislation in February 2006, banning the keeping of poultry, including chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons and quails, in backyards. Offenders faced fines of between $50,000 and $100,000. People keeping poultry as pets before the ban went into effect were required to apply for exemption permits to continue keeping those pets. Owners of racing pigeons were required to have exhibition licences.

In August 2006, the Government completed its one-year offer to poultry farmers and live poultry wholesalers and transporters to surrender their licences, or cease operation voluntarily in return for an ex gratia payment. This was to reduce Hong Kong's live poultry population and the accompanying risk of avian flu settling in. A total of 145 poultry farmers — 101 chicken, 39 pigeon and five duck farmers — accepted the offer. Sixteen wholesalers followed suit. As a result, the number of birds reared in Hong Kong farms is expected to fall to 1.7 million, a decrease of about 53 per cent.

The AFCD conducted an exercise, codenamed 'Lily', with the Centre for Health Protection on October 20, 2006 to assess the department's preparedness should it be called upon to cull large numbers of birds in Hong Kong's poultry farms. In November, the department also co-hosted two meetings to brief FEHD and Centre for Health Protection personnel on government measures to combat avian influenza and increase public awareness of those measures.