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PRIMARY PRODUCTION
lies fallow. The able-bodied members of these rural communities have moved to the city or overseas for better paid work. However, during the year there has been a reverse trend in that some ex-farm workers have taken up farming again, due to the recession in the manufacturing industries. Meanwhile, acreage for vegetable produc- tion has continued to increase. The skilled cultivator can maintain a good standard of living from a one-acre farm, and now uses many modern horticultural techniques such as sprinkler irrigation, mechanised cultivation and better pest control measures to maintain a continuous succession of crops throughout the year.
Pig and poultry production is more susceptible to changes in the quantity level of imported swine and poultry and to fluctuations in the prices of feeding stuffs, which are almost entirely imported. Despite a slight decrease in the overall average feed prices in 1975, production of pig and poultry did not completely recover from the setback of 1974 when world feed prices were high. There was also a significant in- crease in the importation of pigs and poultry in 1975.
Administration and Services
The Agriculture and Fisheries Department provides a development information service to the primary industries. The details of new projects put forward are carefully considered, and those expected to prove both viable and in the interests of Hong Kong are actively encouraged.
Consumer demand and local primary production, within the context of world food production and supply, are investigated so that development planning can be undertaken. All available statistical data on production factors and food supplies, including imports, are collected and analysed to assist in the formulation of local production and marketing policies. Business efficiency of differing sectors and units within primary industries are studied to establish and update productivity standards, and to facilitate advice on their improvement. Forward projection studies of the anticipated market demands for foods are prepared. The projections are then related to the local primary production capacity, both actual and potential. New food supply sources are also examined. Detailed surveys and studies are carried out on the distribution systems, and on the dynamics of the wholesale marketing of foodstuffs, so that long term development decisions can be planned.
The department encourages optimum land utilisation. It provides technical, extension and advisory services to farmers. It manages large areas of open country- side, being responsible for soil and water conservation, fire fighting, woodland manage- ment, landscape repair, and the development of recreational services for the public. The department also deals with the economic, social and technological development of the Hong Kong fishing industry. It handles the administrative organisation and supervision of co-operative societies of all types and supervises credit unions.
Research programmes of the department extend to and include crop and animal husbandry as well as fisheries. On government farms, experiments continue into im- proving the quality and yield per acre of vegetables, flowers and fruits. The department advises livestock farmers on modern methods of animal production and assists them