Live birds, poultry products intercepted in province

Millions worth of poultry products such as eggs and dressed chicken as well as game fowls have been seized by personnel of the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) in various points of entry in Negros Occidental since Wednesday.

The provincial government is prohibiting the entry of live birds and poultry products from all regions in the Philippines from February 28 to March 15 as a precaution against confirmed bird flu cases in at least two Luzon provinces.

On March 3, the PVO reported its personnel intercepted four heads of game fowls and 170 heads of pigeons at the port in Bacolod City.

At the Bacolod-Silay Airport in Silay City, 76 kilos of processed poultry meat from Manila were also confiscated upon arrival.
All seized live animals and food items were immediately sent back to their points of origin, the PVO report said.

Dr. Renante Decena, provincial veterinarian, said owners of shipments are informed about the temporary ban as the province has already issued notices.

“This is necessary to protect the entire industry in the province. There’s no need to worry about the supply of poultry products as it can be addressed by local producers,” he added.

On Wednesday afternoon, the PVO inspection team intercepted a van from Dipolog City containing 150,000 pieces of eggs valued at P1 million at the border of Barangay Tagukon in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, and Mabinay town, Negros Oriental.

A few hours earlier, four delivery vans loaded with 11.5 tons of dressed chicken worth P2.3 million from Iloilo province were also seized at the Bredco port in Bacolod.

The eggs and dressed chicken supplies were also sent back to their respective points of origin.

In Executive Order 22-09, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said the temporary ban, which covers domestic and wild birds, and their products, including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs, semen, and manure, seeks to ensure the safety of the poultry industry in Negros Occidental as well as to protect the general public from the ill-effects of the bird flu disease.

Negros Occidental has a P8-billion poultry industry, comprising the P4-billion broiler and native chicken sectors; the P3-billion game fowls; and the P1-billion layer and duck sectors.* (Nanette Guadalquiver)