Source: Chris Scott, MEATINGPLACE, 12/2/13

Officials in China are taking concrete steps to make sure that this year’s bird flu outbreak will not repeat itself in future years by periodically suspending live poultry trading in 110 poultry markets.

The first suspension will begin Jan. 31, 2014 – the first day of Chinese New Year – and will last until Apr. 30, according to China’s official Xinhua news agency. The ban will be in effect periodically for the next five years, depending on the warnings about the potential for bird flu and season-related onsets, the Shanghai Agricultural Commission and the Shanghai Commerce Commission announced in a joint statement. The new program includes stiff fines for wholesalers and retailers who violate the ban and punishment of unlicensed street vendors who sell live poultry by China’s urban management teams.

Live poultry markets in Shanghai were shut down last April when an outbreak of H7N9 bird flu killed 43 people in China and had sickened 134 people by the end of September, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission. The ban was lifted in June, allowing about 110 live poultry markets to reopen, according to the news agency.

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