SEIZED. Inspectors of the Provincial Veterinary Office, dispatched through the Provincial African swine fever (ASF) Task Force, confiscate pork-based food items from passengers arriving at the Bredco Port in Bacolod City late January. The province of Negros Occidental has also banned the entry of live pigs, pork, and pork-based products from Mindanao after the reported positive case of ASF in Davao Occidental. (Photo courtesy of Provincial ASF Task Force - Negros Occidental)
BACOLOD CITY -- The province of Negros Occidental has expanded its ban on the entry of live pigs, pork, and pork-based products to include the rest of Mindanao to protect its multi-billion swine industry from the dreaded African swine fever (ASF).
Initially, the ban covered only the Davao region, following the reported positive case of ASF in Davao Occidental that caused the death of a thousand pigs.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, chair of the Provincial ASF Task Force, cited in a memorandum dated February 6 the report and findings of the Provincial Veterinary Office on the spread of ASF in Mindanao.
“The Department of Agriculture has no clear-cut and immediate measures to protect the nearby regions and provinces from being affected by the ASF virus,” Lacson said in the directive issued to the mayors of the 12 cities and 19 municipalities of the province on Thursday.
He added that “such incidence of ASF poses a great threat to the province, being one of the gateways of livestock and meat products trading to Panay provinces and Luzon.”
“Therefore, I hereby declare the banning on the entry of live pigs, boar semen, pork, pork products, and other pork-related food items from Mindanao,” Lacson said.
In December, the province already imposed a permanent ban on the entry of pork from Luzon and other affected areas to the province through an ordinance.
In his latest memorandum, Lacson also directed the local chief executives to ensure the implementation of preventive and safeguard measures as embodied in the “ASF Prevention Ordinance of Negros Occidental.”
On February 3, he first issued a memorandum to all the mayors to prohibit the entry of live pigs, pork products, and pork-based items coming only from the Davao region.
He also told them to implement preventive measures in their respective areas of jurisdiction and enjoined local government units to coordinate their activities with the task force to ensure a coordinated response and action throughout the province.
Measures include the conduct of rigid and stringent screening and inspection of incoming shipments of live animals and pork products from Mindanao, and holding of checkpoints to intercept and control the movement of live animals, pork, pork products, and other related items entering the province. (PNA)
