CityU’s newly opened dairy farm to promote One Health and train fledgling veterinarians

The opening of the dairy farm in Lam Tsuen, Tai Po, on 16 November by City University of Hong Kong (CityU) marks another milestone in promoting veterinary medicine, the concept of One Health, safeguarding public health and championing animal welfare.

CityU Farm embodies the ideals and mission of the long-term CityU project to transform Hong Kong into an innovative hub for research and training in veterinary medicine and life sciences.

Officiating at the opening ceremony were Dr Chung Shui-ming, CityU Pro-Chancellor; Mr Lester Garson Huang, Council Chairman, CityU; President Way Kuo; Dr Choi Yuk-lin, Secretary for Education, HKSAR Government; and Mr Michael T H Lee, Chairman, Hong Kong Jockey Club. Mr Carlson Tong Ka-shing, Chairman of the University Grants Committee (UGC), delivered a video message.

The CityU Farm is equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and facilities and will operate in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. It will allow students on CityU’s unique six-year Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) programme to gain hands-on experience and learn animal husbandry and farm management skills.

Speaking at the ceremony, Dr Chung said: “CityU has demonstrated through the establishment of the Farm that it is indeed a genuinely world-class institution, one that is dedicated to working for the benefit of society through professional education and pioneering research.”

In her address, Dr Choi commended the CityU team for their concerted efforts to promote the revolutionary development of veterinary education in Hong Kong. “Sparing no effort in cementing its position as one of the key players in the local and regional higher education landscape, CityU has boosted Hong Kong’s status as an innovative hub to further the frontiers of veterinary medicine and life sciences,” she said.

Mr Huang said the CityU Farm is set to promote veterinary medicine under the One Health concept, which binds together the collective efforts in championing human, animal and environmental health at CityU.

President Kuo, who first suggested creating a school for veterinary medicine when he joined CityU in 2008, said the CityU Farm was something everyone in Hong Kong could be proud of. He pointed out that the Farm was an unrivalled facility in Hong Kong in the critically important field of veterinary medicine.

“Since 2008, CityU has established the School of Energy and Environment and the Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences (JCC). Now with the CityU Farm, we take a further step forward for the ideal of the human-animal-environment trinity,” he said.

CityU has established a close collaborative relationship with Cornell University in the US to set up the JCC; launched a government-funded BVM programme; developed postgraduate programmes; hired world-class faculty; selected top-class students from all over the world; opened a clinic and labs and facilities; and secured significant donations from friends and supporters.