SINGAPORE, Feb. 4 (Xinhuanet) -- The Singapore government has temporarily banned small-scale poultry farming as a precaution against the deadly bird flu plaguing the region, local press reported on Wednesday.

    The Agri-food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) of Singapore was quoted by Channelnewsasia, a local English language TV station, as saying that the 700 or so birds belonging to four small farms and 18 families on Pulau Ubin, a scenic islet and popular weekend get away just a few kilometers from the Singapore main island, will be removed by Friday.

    The Channelnewsasia report said that the AVA had consulted its counterparts in bird flu stricken countries like Thailand, Laos and Vietnam and was informed that all the outbreaks started in small backyard farms just like the ones in Pulau Ubin.

    The AVA had earlier said it would buy the birds, all of which are healthy, from their owners and donate them to charity after slaughtering.

    If refused, the food safety regulator has the legal power to confiscate them under the Animal and Birds Act.

    The AVA has also stepped up checks at the larger-scale poultry farms on the mainland and requested the public to stay away from the farms as well as the slaughterhouses. Enditem