April 6, 2004

Vietnam Bans Live Poultry Sale In Ho Chi Minh City

Just one week after Vietnam declared itself free of bird flu, its biggest city has barred the sale of live chickens at markets and near homes to prevent the repeat of the virus that claimed 16 human lives in the country.

Ho Chi Minh City's Animal Health Department issued the ban as well as rules on the slaughter of chickens, state-run Vietnam News daily reported on Tuesday.

The H5N1 virus caused the death of 43.2 million out of about 250 million poultry in Vietnam, and resulted in eight human deaths in neighbouring Thailand, which expects to declare it is free of the virus this week.

Health experts believe all or most of the victims caught the disease from sick poultry or contact with their waste. Vietnam's southern region saw the biggest poultry outbreaks.

Under the new rules, Ho Chi Minh City, home to around eight million people, will insist that abattoirs be enclosed and use separate entrances for the transport of live and processed poultry, the newspaper said.

Chicken and eggs have only recently re-appeared on menus in Vietnam since the flu outbreak started at the end of 2003.