The Department of Agriculture (DA) has ordered stricter control and containment measures against bird flu after initial confirmation of the avian influenza (AI) H5N1 outbreaks affecting duck and quail farms in Bulacan, Pampanga, Laguna and Camarines Sur.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar emphasized the need to act immediately to control avian influenza, which was initially detected in a duck farm in Bulacan and quail farms in Pampanga, to contain the spread and damage to the poultry industry.
“The avian influenza virus detected is of subtype H5N1, which is also a threat to human health. This is the very reason we have to double our efforts in controlling and containing bird flu, and we can accomplish this through cooperation – especially those who are engaged in poultry production,” Dar said.
The DA has recently issued Memorandum Circulars No. 5 and 6 prescribing the guidelines on the local movement of domestic and wild birds and poultry products and by-products during the Avian Influenza surveillance period.
The policy regulates the movement of ducks, quails, chicken and other poultry commodities in affected areas, particularly those coming from within the one-kilometer (km) quarantine area.
The DA also said Tuesday it is working closely with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to intensify the monitoring in piers and ports against agricultural smuggling, particularly of carrots.
Agriculture Assistant Secretary Noel Reyes said this in a radio interview, after a Senate hearing on Monday revealed that farmers in La Trinidad, Benguet, are losing an average of P2.5 million daily since the start of 2022 because of agricultural smuggling.
“That is what the BOC and the DA are intensely looking at now in piers and ports. The smuggled crops should be confiscated and not be brought here,” Reyes said.
“We do not issue import permits for carrots. Those are smuggled. We appeal to the traders that those acts hurt our farmers,” he added.
“Farm owners must comply with the transport requirements in compliance with the prescribed surveillance period, diagnostic tests, and biosecurity protocol of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). This is to mitigate animal and public health risks posed by the virus,” said Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) director Reildrin Morales.
He added that the DA-BAI has been closely working with local government units (LGUs), DA-Regional Field Offices (RFOs), and other poultry industry stakeholders to ensure that biosecurity and disease control measures are implemented accordingly.
The BAI, in close coordination with the LGUs and the private sector, has been conducting surveillance in all affected areas, along with the Department of Health (DOH) that monitors possible transmission of the H5N1 virus to people. To date, the DOH has not detected any sign nor symptom in all outbreak areas.
Morales explained the policy provides guidance to LGUs and poultry industry stakeholders on the prescribed movement of live birds, poultry products and by-products from Luzon to Region 4-B or MIMAROPA, the Visayas and Mindanao.
He said that confirmed cases of H5N1 have also been reported in the provinces of Nueva Ecija, Bataan, Tarlac, Sultan Kudarat and Benguet.
The possible sources of infection and spread of the virus in those areas are the presence of migratory or resident wild birds, late or non-reporting of suspect cases, and illegal movement of infected birds from H5N1 infected areas as per disease investigation conducted by veterinary authorities.
On the global scale, H5N1 is the predominant strain in almost all poultry outbreaks in 2021 and 2022. Of the 38 countries that reported the detection of H5N1 since the last quarter of 2021, 31 still have active cases, including the US, Canada, South Korea, Japan, and most EU member-countries.
Dar called for full cooperation from poultry stakeholders and LGUs to report suspect cases to avert a possible crisis that may undo the gains of the sub-sector.
“We made it possible to be avian flu-free in previous outbreaks. We could still do that again, but we need your help. We depend and rely on you in this battle against avian flu,” he said.