Gert van der Hoek
In Memoriam - Editor, Senior Moderator
[h=1]Monday, 9 January 2017 [/h] BEIJING, Jan 9 (Reuters) - The Southern Chinese city of Guangzhou will suspend the trade of live and slaughtered poultry for three-day periods during January to March, the government said, to prevent the spread of avian flu to humans.
The ban, effective from 16th to 18th of each of those months, will exclude frozen poultry products, according to a statement on the website of Guangzhou government.
Neighbouring South Korea and Japan are battling outbreaks of bird flu that have forced farmers to cull millions of birds and raised concerns about the risks of it spreading to neighbouring countries.
Under the ban, poultry wholesale markets and poultry trading at agricultural products fairs will remain closed, while live and slaughtered poultry cannot be stored in the markets.
The local government issued the ban to reduce the chances of human bird flu infection, as right now "it is the peak season for outbreaks," said the official statement.
The ban, effective from 16th to 18th of each of those months, will exclude frozen poultry products, according to a statement on the website of Guangzhou government.
Neighbouring South Korea and Japan are battling outbreaks of bird flu that have forced farmers to cull millions of birds and raised concerns about the risks of it spreading to neighbouring countries.
Under the ban, poultry wholesale markets and poultry trading at agricultural products fairs will remain closed, while live and slaughtered poultry cannot be stored in the markets.
The local government issued the ban to reduce the chances of human bird flu infection, as right now "it is the peak season for outbreaks," said the official statement.