By Stephanie Sevillano
MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Thursday announced a temporary import ban on birds and poultry products from South Dakota, United States after the said state reported several outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza (AI) in Dec. 17, 2024.
Under DA Memorandum Order No. 4, the ban applies to domestic and wild birds, eggs, semen for artificial insemination, day-old chicks, and other poultry products.
In a statement, DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the DA’s move is necessary “to protect the health of the local poultry industry.”
He also ordered all veterinary quarantine officers and inspectors to confiscate commodities from South Dakota.
Exemptions, however, apply to those already in transit or have arrived at local ports after the issuance of the order; while poultry products must have been slaughtered on or before Nov. 13, 2024.
On Jan. 8, Tiu Laurel also imposed a similar import ban following the outbreak of the AI H7N6 strain in domestic birds in East Otago, Waitaki, and Canterbury in New Zealand.
As of Jan. 17, the Bureau of Animal Industry has no reported cases of highly pathogenic AI in the country. (PNA)
