It is impracticable for Hong Kong to implement a 'zero live chicken' policy at this stage, Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Carrie Yau says, calling on the poultry sector to support preventive measures against bird flu.

Speaking on a radio talkshow today, Mrs Yau said the suspension of live chicken imports from the Mainland should not create any major problem for live poultry sellers, as there are more than two million live chickens still in Hong Kong.

The Government's preventive measures aim to maintain people's confidence in chicken consumption. Mrs Yau said preventive measures will ensure the poultry sector can continue to operate.

Mrs Yau said to protect public health, the local live chicken stock must be cut and the target is to cap it at two million, otherwise it would be difficult to destroy them promptly should an outbreak occur.

Central slaughtering

Mrs Yau said public support for central slaughtering is rising, and this is the direction of policy development, adding that Singapore and northern parts of the Mainland have implemented the measure.

Consideration of central slaughtering is not confined to site selection, it also involves legislative work, which is in progress.

On recent H5N1 cases involving mammals like cats, Mrs Yau said there is no cause for fear as the DNA of cats and humans is different. She called on people not to abandon their pet cats, but to avoid contact with stray cats and dogs.

On the voluntary return of licence scheme for local pig farms, Mrs Yau said works on getting more resources for ex-gratia allowances are on-going, and hoped the scheme can keep the number of pigs in Hong Kong to a minimum.

Centre for Health Protection Principal Medical & Health Officer Dr SK Chuang said Mainland and Hong Kong experts are trying to trace the source of the human H5N1 case in Guangzhou. She said the centre believes the source is from live poultry, as the victim stayed in a poultry market for a long period before falling ill.