January 27, 2004

 

 

Singapore To Guard Against Bird Flu

 

With bird flu spreading rapidly across Asia, Singapore has devised plans to arm itself against the avian flu epidemic ravaging the region.

 

With immediate effect, the public will be banned from visiting any of the seven poultry farms and 14 slaughterhouses here, while workers there will be given flu shots.

 

Farm inspections will be doubled, to twice a day, and checks on lorries bringing in poultry from Malaysia will be stepped up.

 

If these measures fail to keep the deadly disease out, 150 or more Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) officers can be mobilised to cull all the birds on a farm within an hour of the first bird flu case being detected there.

 

Another 150 or so police and civil defence officers could also be deployed to lock down and decontaminate the area and incinerate the birds within four to six hours.

 

Although Singapore has no cases of bird flu, AVA chief executive officer Ngiam Tong Tau made it clear yesterday that it is taking no chances.

 

He said: 'We will do everything possible to keep the disease out. If it comes in, we will do everything possible to eradicate the disease within the fastest time.'

 

For now, prevention is key. AVA is requiring all its poultry farms to be 'bird-proofed' to prevent wild birds, which could carry the disease, from mingling with chickens.

 

Netting to keep such birds out has already gone up at all but one of the farms, and the last one will have it up in a few days.

 

Details of all vehicles travelling into the farms will be recorded, and their wheels will be hosed down with disinfectant before entry to ensure there is no faecal matter on them. Mandatory fever checks will be carried out daily on all staff working at the farms.

 

But stricter rules aside, Dr Ngiam said it was safe to eat chickens and eggs here as the disease is not spread through contaminated meat.

 

The 2.2 million chickens bred here do not end up on the dinner table - they are reared strictly for their eggs.

 

Nonetheless, the farms and AVA staff will look out for any signs of infection.

 

AVA's deputy chief executive officer, Dr Chua Sin Bin, said: 'The signs are clear: If a chicken is sick, its comb, legs and wattles - the fleshy fold of skin hanging from its throat - will turn purple, and its head will swell. They can be very healthy one day and drop dead the next.'

 

Birds coming in from Malaysia are also being closely watched. AVA officers stationed at the Tuas checkpoint will inspect closely the lorries that bring in the 120,000 live birds from Malaysia daily.

 

Malaysia meets all of Singapore's live chicken needs.

 

Checks at slaughterhouses here will also be stepped up, and all workers have to don N95 masks - the same ones used by health-care workers to protect against Sars.

 

The precautions will even extend across the Causeway, where AVA will step up checks at the Malaysian farms it has accredited.

 

As a last resort, a ban will be slapped on Malaysian chickens if the disease spreads to farms there, said Dr Ngiam.

 

If that happens, suppliers are ready: They have been primed to look for new sources of frozen chicken.

 

Last year, Singapore imported 103,000 tonnes of frozen chicken meat, with Thai imports, which are now banned, accounting for 14.5 per cent.

 

Most of the chicken came from Brazil (53 per cent) and America (17 per cent), with the rest coming from other countries such as the Netherlands and China.

 

The scare has had a predictable impact on chicken prices. The price of frozen chicken shot up by 20 per cent yesterday, said Mr Chiew Kian Huat, secretary of the Poultry Merchants' Association Singapore.

 

He said: 'For frozen chicken legs, the wholesale price is now $3.50 to $4 per kg. For consumers, this means paying about $4.50 per kg now.'