Update | Hong Kong bans live chicken sales after bird flu case in market

The government yesterday banned the sale of live chickens for three weeks and is preparing to cull 20,000 birds at the wholesale market in Cheung Sha Wan today.

The developments came after a sample from a Guangdong supplier tested positive for H7N9 bird flu, which has killed dozens of people in China since last year.

The decision sparked anger among chicken traders, who had been expecting bumper sales over the Lunar New Year.

Fearing they would lose millions of dollars, some staged a protest last night, driving a truck loaded with live chickens to Government House in Central. The truck was stopped by police on Upper Albert Road, the only route to Government House, causing some traffic disruption as a stand-off ensued.

Secretary for Food and Health Dr Ko Wing-man said the government had contacted mainland authorities, asking them to help trace the source of the virus. It was the first confirmed case in an imported chicken since an H7 gene test was introduced last April.

The last time an import ban and cull were carried out was in 2011, when a chicken found dead in the Cheung Sha Wan market was confirmed to have H5N1, another bird flu strain deadly to humans.