The Department of Agriculture said the country would start accepting domestic, wild birds and poultry product importations from California and South Dakota after the government lifted the importation ban from the two U.S. states.
Agriculture secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. issued Memorandum Order No. 37 allowing the importation of wild and domestic birds, including poultry products such as meat, hatching eggs, day-old chicks, and semen for artificial insemination from the two U.S. states.
Laurel said the ban was lifted after the two U.S. states reported zero cases of avian influenza since May and June this year.
The DA temporarily banned birds and poultry products from California in January and South Dakota in November last year.
The DA imposed importation bans after confirmed outbreaks of the H5N1 subtype of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, which has killed millions of infected birds and poultry.
According to the Agriculture Department, bird flu can sometimes infect some mammals, including humans.
The DA said the multi-billion poultry sector significantly contributes to Philippine agriculture, accounting for around 18% of farm output, and is vital to food security.
The poultry sector saw a 2% increase in the first half of this year, with chicken production as the driver.
Central Luzon reported the highest inventory, 33.68 million birds, followed by CALABARZON, 27.32 million, and Northern Mindanao, 25.87 million.
댓글