Two of the most pressing problems facing the Chinese government crossed paths on Thursday at a modest collection of buildings in the north-eastern city of Harbin, just round the corner from an old Russian Orthodox church.

The Harbin Veterinary Research Institute has been at the forefront of China’s efforts to contain the bird flu epidemic. Since the government announced a massive bird vaccination campaign earlier this month, the institute has been working overtime to produce as many as 20m doses a day of the vaccine its researchers invented.