PRIMARY PRODUCTION
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involved in primary production. In addition, it is responsible for the registration and supervision of co-operative societies and credit unions.
Consumer demand and local primary production are monitored for development plan- ning purposes. Statistics on food supplies, including imports, are collected and analysed to help formulate local production and marketing policies. The business efficiency of different sectors within the primary industries is studied to establish and update pro- ductivity standards and to identify areas for improvement.
Agricultural Development
Owing to the shortage and rising costs of farm labour and land in Hong Kong, the main development in the agricultural industry in recent years has been the introduction of labour-saving devices and intensive production practices. Farmers use pre-emergence herbicides for weed control in market garden crops and there is widespread use of small farm machines and sprinkler irrigation.
Integrated pest management, a safe method of pest control on vegetables without the use of toxic pesticides, is the subject of an active development programme undertaken by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department. The use of a safe microbial organism to control the Diamond-back moth, a major pest on leafy green vegetables, has been adopted by local farmers. Seminars and demonstrations are also organised to publicise and promote in- -tegrated pest control and safe use of pesticides.
The cultivation of edible mushrooms gives good return on marginal land. New strains, high quality spawn and technical advice based on experimental results, are made avail- able to growers. The mass seedling production technique for the cultivation of high value western vegetables has become an active development programme in the year.
Exotic and improved local breeds of pigs and chickens are readily accepted by livestock farmers due to their superior performance. Sporadic outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in pigs and Newcastle disease in poultry still occur but are kept under control by vac-
cination.
To help farmers comply with the Livestock Waste Control Scheme requirements, the Agriculture and Fisheries Department has introduced the rearing of pigs on sawdust litter, an innovative non-polluting and cost-effective pig husbandry technique. This simple method involves a special bedding material comprising sawdust and bacterial products in the pig shed to decompose the pig manure in situ.
Parallel to the development of the pig-on-litter method, studies were conducted on the recycling of the sawdust litter for horticultural and landscaping use. Results so far are promising and indicate that sawdust litter is readily usable and a good soil conditioner.
Loans are available to the agricultural industry through three main funds: the Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund, the J.E. Joseph Trust Fund and the Vegetable Marketing Organisation Loan Fund. These funds are administered by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department. By December 31, 1990, loans issued since the inception of these three funds had reached $282.9 million. Of this, $275.3 million has been repaid.
There were 67 co-operative societies and two federations among the farming community with a total membership of some 11 790 farmers. These societies help to promote agri- culture and operate under a Co-operative Societies Ordinance, which provides for the appointment of a registrar- the Director of Agriculture and Fisheries. His powers and duties relate to the registration of co-operative societies and their by-laws, the auditing of