BEIJING, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- There had been no reports of bird flu outbreak among poultry since January in the provinces where eight human infections were found, China Daily reported on Friday.

    "There is no epidemic outbreak of the H5N1 strain of avian influenza in the seven provinces where the human bird flu cases were identified," the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said in a statement to the newspaper.

    The conclusion was based on researches of the overall epidemiological situation and investigations conducted last month, the ministry said.

    The statement was made after the UN"e;s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned on possible bird flu outbreaks among poultry in China.

    "The human cases show the virus must be circulating among birds," Vincent Martin, a senior technical advisor on avian flu for the FAO said Wednesday, indicating that it was not normal that there had been no confirmation or reports of outbreaks in poultry.

    The MOA said it has kept international organizations including the World Organization for Animal Health and the FAO updated about the bird flu situation in China.

    Experts from the ministry said the existence of the bird flu virus does not necessarily mean an outbreak among poultry.

    Of the 37 human cases reported in China since 2005, only 4 were linked to poultry outbreaks, the MOA said.

    "It is quite common that not all human cases are interlinked with animal cases," the statement said.

    However, Chinese customers had been staying away from poultry for the past two months due to the bird flu scare.

    The Beijing municipal industrial and commercial bureau banned the sale of live poultry immediately in the city after the bird flu claimed its first victim.

    But many people are still afraid of contracting the virus and prefer to keep away from poultry meat. Chu Jianjun, a vendor at Yuegezhuang Wholesale Market - once the city"e;s biggest live poultry market - said he used to buy between 800 to 1,000 skinned chickens every month. That number has dropped to 120.

    Chu has slashed prices and began selling milk, eggs and other products to cope with the drop in sales, he said.

    As for people who are still buying poultry, many of them prefer trusted stores and brands, though.

    Tang Lan, a housewife, said kongpao chicken is her family"e;s favorite dish and she still makes it. But she buys the chicken from supermarkets such as Carrefour or Walmart.

    Eight human bird flu cases have been reported in the country in January, the most in a single month since 2003 when the lethal virus was first detected in humans, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Five people have died.