Press Releases

More live chickens from the Mainland for Tuen Ng Festival

The daily quantity of live chicken imports from the Mainland would be temporarily increased from the current level of 20,000 to 50,000 to meet the surge in public demand for live chickens in the three days preceding the Tuen Ng Festival, (June 16 to 18), a spokesman for the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau said today (June 5).

"According to past experience, the trade was committed to observing public health conditions strictly and ensured that there was no overstocking of live chickens in the retail outlets," the spokesman said.

The number of chickens to be imported on June 19 will resume to the daily limit of 20,000.

As to the request of further increasing the number of chicken imports, the spokesman explained that the Government had to be careful and decided to adopt last year's arrangement again in view of the avian influenza cases in the area.

The spokesman stressed that if human or poultry avian influenza infection were found in Guangdong or Hong Kong before or during this period, the Government would immediately suspend this arrangement.

He reminded the trade and the public to continue observing measures strictly to prevent avian influenza during the festive period, adding that the Government would closely monitor the situation at the market as usual during the period.



Ends/Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Issued at HKT 17:17

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