WORK OF THE INSPECTION AND QUARANTINE BRANCH

• To investigate and control outbreaks of animal diseases;
• To conduct livestock farm inspections;
• To provide veterinary diagnostic support and surveillance services for detecting diseases and drug residues in food animals;
• To regulate the importation of animals/plants and their products;
• To certify exportation of animals/plants and their products;
• To control and regulate the registration and sale of pesticides;
• To monitor and regulate the trade of animals; and
• To promote animal welfare and manage stray animals.

 

PREVENTION OF AVIAN INFLUENZA

To safeguard the population against Avian Influenza (AI), the Department continued its year-round programme to monitor and screen for the presence of the virus at various sites considered to be at risk, including poultry farms, the wholesale poultry market, pet bird shops, recreational parks and nature reserves.  Dead birds were collected and tested on a daily basis.  In total, 9,176 bird carcasses and 55,247 swab samples were collected for testing in 2013-14.  In January 2014, a batch of live poultry imported from Guangdong was confirmed to be infected by H7 avian influenza virus. As a result, more than 22,600 birds imported were culled at the Cheung Sha Wan Temporary Wholesale Poultry Market. The Government suspended the delivery of all live poultry to the market for 21 days.

Unauthorised keeping of backyard poultry (chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons and quails) is an offence with a maximum fine of $100,000.  To enforce the ban, the departmental staff regularly patrolled villages in rural areas as well as conducted blitz operations during the year.

To enhance public awareness of the prevention of AI, promotional programmes were held during Mid-autumn Festival in 2013 and before Lunar New Year in 2014. They included paying visits to villages to disseminate messages about AI prevention, putting up of posters onto village information boards and distributing leaflets and souvenirs to members of the public.

All imported pet birds entering Hong Kong have to be tested for AI before being released to their importers.

 

LIVESTOCK FARM INSPECTIONS

To protect the general population from AI, the Department has imposed stringent biosecurity requirements on local poultry farms in addition to the obligatory AI vaccination programme.  Every batch of local farm chickens must pass the AI test before they are allowed to be sold in markets for consumption.

The Department carries out regular inspection to local pig farms and provides professional advice to farmers in terms of farm management, biosecurity, disease prevention and proper usage of veterinary drugs.

During the year, the departmental staff conducted 2,844 inspections on livestock farms and quarantined 1,332 pigs imported for breeding purposes.

 

VETERINARY LABORATORY

Tai Lung Veterinary Laboratory provides veterinary diagnostic support services including testing of animal pathogens and chemical residues in pre-slaughter food animals. In 2013-14, over 14,500 requests were received for animal, bird and fish disease investigation. Also, over 297,000 and 128,200 tests for AI and chemical residues were conducted respectively.

 

ANIMAL AND PLANT QUARANTINE CONTROL

As the animal import and export control authority in Hong Kong, the Department is responsible for ensuring that all cross-border animal movements are closely monitored to prevent the introduction of animal diseases into Hong Kong.

Special permits issued by the Department are required for the import of live animals and birds in accordance with the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance (Cap 139) and the Rabies Ordinance (Cap 421).  Importing animals and birds without a special permit is liable to prosecution. In 2013-14, a total of 6,360 permits were issued for the import/transit of live animals and birds.

To comply with the import requirements of destination places, the Department issues Animal Health Certificates to facilitate the export of animals and birds.  A total of 4,254 applications were processed by the Department during the year.

To strengthen the efforts to prevent illegal importation of animals and to safeguard public health, the Quarantine Detector Dog (QDD) Programme commenced operation in February 2008 and QDDs are now deployed at various boundary control points including Lok Ma Chau, Shenzhen Bay and the Hong Kong International Airport.

Under the Plant (Importation and Pest Control) Ordinance (Cap 207), any plant imported into Hong Kong must be accompanied by a Plant Import Licence issued by the Department and a valid Phytosanitary Certificate issued by the national plant protection organisation of the exporting territory.  For importation of plant pests, an authorisation must be obtained in advance.  A total of 2,080 import licences and authorisations were issued by the Department in 2013-14.

Statistics on plant import control and phytosanitary certification services are at Appendix 9.

 

CONTROL ON PESTICIDES

In view of the continuous concern about the safety of Diazinon and Paraquat, the Department has completed a review of the registration of the two pesticides and cancelled the Part I registration of Diazinon on 1 January 2014.  The Part II registration of Diazinon and Paraquat will also be cancelled on 31 December 2014.  To ensure the safety of pesticide users and members of the public, the Department will continue to closely monitor the international regulation of pesticides and regularly review the registration of local pesticides.

The Department is committed to promoting the safe use of pesticides in different sectors. Besides assisting the industry and relevant government departments to develop or update the code of practice on pesticide use, the Department also offers technical seminars to farmers on a regular basis to promote the use of good agricultural practices. To enhance understanding of safe and proper use of domestic and agricultural pesticides, an exhibition was held at the Farmfest 2014. In cooperation with the Education Bureau, seminars were organised for school administrators and  pesticide users while a new pamphlet titled "Use Pesticides Safely in Schools, Follow Precautionary Rules" was distributed in schools. Relevant information and guidelines are available on the Department's website.

Statistics on pesticide control are at Appendix 10.

 

PLANT VARIETIES PROTECTION

The Plant Varieties Protection Ordinance (Cap 490) provides plant breeders (or the owners of the variety) with legal means to apply for proprietary rights over cultivated plant varieties they bred and developed. Grantees are given the exclusive rights to import, export, produce for sale, offer for sale or sell reproductive materials of the protected variety for a term of 20 or 25 years.

 

ANIMAL MANAGEMENT

The Department adopts various animal management measures to control animal diseases, regulate animal trading and promote animal welfare.

Rabies is controlled effectively in Hong Kong, without any case found since the 1980s.  In 2013-14, some 62,000 new or renewed dog licences were issued after the dogs were vaccinated against rabies.

During the year, about 7,500 dogs and 2,800 cats were caught, received or handled.  About 900 animals, healthy and with good temperament, were re-homed through 12 partner animal welfare organisations.

Under the law, all animal traders are required to obtain Animal Trader Licences (ATLs) issued by the Department and should strictly observe the corresponding licensing conditions. Pet shops are required to obtain dogs for sale only from approved sources.  The Department inspects these shops regularly to ensure that they do not contravene any of the licensing conditions.  In 2013-14, some 440 ATLs were issued, covering the trade of dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, etc.

Together with the Food and Health Bureau, the Department launched a public consultation in 2012 on the proposed amendment to the Public Health (Animals and Birds) (Animal Traders) Regulations (Cap 139B) to better regulate pet trading.  Over 2,700 written submissions were received.  The majority of the written submissions support the amendment to the Regulations, holding that the licensing of persons who breed and sell dogs is necessary.  Drafting of the proposed amendments to the Ordinance is currently underway.

The Department has been collaborating with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and other interested animal welfare organisations to implement a "Capture-Sterilise-Relocate" pilot programme for stray cattle in Sai Kung and Lantau Island with a view to controlling the stray cattle population in the long run.  This will help minimise the nuisance and danger potentially caused by stray cattle to the public while at the same time safeguard the welfare of the stray cattle.  From the start of the programme in 2011 to the end of 2013, a total of 245 cattle/buffalo were neutered and relocated.

Statistics on animal control and management, and the relevant permits/licences issued are at Appendix 11.

 

ANIMAL WELFARE

The Department promotes kindness to animals through its continued public education and publicity campaigns.

During the year, the Department organised a wide range of activities to educate the public on responsible pet ownership, raise awareness of animal welfare and promote re-homing of pets and stray animals.  These activities include “Pets With Love” Four-Panel Comic Drawing/Photo Competition, a large-scale 2-day carnival, 2 animal adoption days, 3 dog obedience training courses, 41 school seminars, 8 estate seminars, 36 roving exhibitions and 2 roving events at railway stations.  The Department also jointly organised various educational programmes with other organisations.  In addition, an education slideshow DVD in 6 languages was produced and sent to domestic helper agencies to educate the newly arrived domestic helpers about the dos and don’ts for handling dogs in public places.

During the year, advertisements promoting various issues concerning public health and animal welfare, and legal requirements on animal business were put up in different media, on body of buses and light buses, and on popular websites.

A You Tube Channel “AFCD Animal Management” has been launched for members of the public to view Announcements in the Public Interest, promotional videos for events organised by the Department and post-event highlights, etc. To make the Animal Management website more interesting, interactive elements including graphics, animation, useful information on pet care have been added to the content of the website, which now provides e-form for seminar registration, email subscription, flash games, tips on pet care as well as information on pet shops, pet hotels and vet clinics.

During the year, a 10-episode TV programme “Pets with Love” was produced and broadcast on buses to promote re-homing of animals. Tips for caring of pets, promotion of adoption days and carnival held by the Department as well as post-event highlights were included in the programme. Apart from distributing various leaflets and posters to the public, the Department made a seasonal e-card for Mid-Autumn Festival to promote responsible pet ownership.

The Department has been collaborating with and supporting its partnering animal welfare organisations in re-homing animals. Free de-sexing services for animals re-homed were provided through them. The Department also collaborated with RTHK Radio 2 to produce an interview segment of animal adopters sharing their stories in the programme “Love Pets” to promote animal adoption and one-minuters providing pet care tips.

The Department provides financial assistance for animal welfare organisations to organise various educational programmes to promote responsible pet ownership, animal welfare and re-homing through government subvention or assisting them to apply for funds under the Sir Robert Ho Tung Charitable Fund. In this regard, the Department has set aside $2 million for application by animal welfare organisations in 2013-14 for the enhancement of animal management and promotion of animal welfare.

To improve the handling of animal cruelty reports or complaints, an animal welfare task force involving the Department, other government departments and the SPCA was set up to enable better inter-departmental coordination and support for animal cruelty cases. The task force meets regularly to review the handling of animal cruelty cases, devise guidelines for each department to improve efficiency and ensure that the welfare of animals involved in these cases is well protected. During the year, two joint roving exhibitions to promote the “Prevention of Cruelty to Animals” were held.