Vietnamese are consuming less poultry meat and eggs as local residents are concerned about the rapid expansion of the H5N1 bird flu virus across the nation. In large cities, including the capital city of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, many consumers have been turning away from chickens and eggs. Due to large supply and low demand, prices of chicken and egg have dropped sharply. Prices of egg have decreased by 20%-25% while prices of chicken meat have fallen by VND5,000 ($0.25) a kilogram. Meanwhile, the H5N1 bird flu virus is spreading in 21 provinces in all three regions. The disease has appeared in hundreds of poultry farms, infecting tens of thousands of chickens and ducks. Authorities in many localities have burned thousands of poultry. They are also using large volume of disinfection chemicals to spray poultry farms. Vietnam is striving to prevent the transmission of H7N9 virus strain from China, taking tougher measures such as tightening control at border gates and banning import of poultry from the northern neighbor. However, Vietnamese traders continue to smuggle chickens from China. Authorities in northernmost provinces have confiscated a large volume of China-sourced chickens, local newspaper reported. (laodong.com.vn Feb 24, Sai Gon Giai Phong – Saigon Liberation Feb 25 p7)
