Aklan includes Cebu in ban on live swine, pork products to curtail AFF
KALIBO, Philippines – The Aklan Provincial Government on Wednesday, March 8 expanded its ban on the entry of all live swine and pork bi-products to include Cebu province. from areas with reported cases of African Swine Fever (ASF).
Aklan Governor Jose Erique Miraflores signed Executive Order (EO) No. 21, Series of 2023, amending the provisions of general ordinance No. 2021-011.
A previous October 2022 EO banned the entry of pork and pork products after Iloilo reported ASF cases.
The new EO represents a total ban on pork from all areas that have reported ASF. It does not list specific areas but Cebu on March 1 reported ASF cases in Carcar City.
Dr. Maria Cyrosa Leen Mabel C. Siñe, chief of the Provincial Veterinarian Office (PVO) said on Thursday, March 9 that “only Aklan province in Panay Island is still considered ASF Free”.
The provinces of Iloilo, Antique, and Capiz have already been previously infected, she added.
It was not clear if the ban, which did not list specific areas, includes Negros Occidental, where Governor Bong Lacson and Bacolod City Mayor Albee Benitez issued a joint executive order banning the entry of pork and pork products from several provinces, including Cebu.
Cebu has also imposed a ban on pork shipments from Negros island.
Governor Gwen Garcia issued an executive order after the provincial veterinary office discovered that blood samples found positive for ASF on March 1 had come from pigs kept in stockyards with those originating from Negros.
Miraflores’ new EO orders the inspection of the luggage of travelers coming to Aklan by sea, air, and land.
Once a pork product has been found, it will be confiscated and burned.
Export ban, too
Aside from banning the entry of pork and pork products, on February 28, 2022, Miraflores also signed E016, Series of 2023, temporarily suspending the export of live slaughtered hogs, culled sows, piglets, and carcasses, including breeder gilts and boars in commercial quantities and purpose.
Jun Agravante, a member of the Federation of Aklan Hog Producers, welcomed the Aklan government’s move.
“We are hoping that the action will not drop prices to the P120 per kilo live weight. We hope that the prevailing price of P150 per kilo will be the minimum rate at least throughout the year. We are hoping that the hog-raising industry remains profitable,” said Agravante.
The province has from 12,000 to 15,000 hog raisers at any time, said the PVO.
Aklan hog raisers sent 4, 821 heads of pigs to Metro Manila in 2020. The PVO has not released figures for 2021 and 2022.
This is not the first time Aklan has banned pork and related products.
Already, Sinel said that their office has already confiscated tons of pork products trying to enter the province for several years.
In December 2022, the local government seized almost P2 million worth of pork products at the Malay port.
The ASF does not threaten human health and cannot be transmitted from pigs to humans. But the World Organization for Animal Health said it can result in massive losses in pig populations, with drastic economic consequences as no effective vaccine is available. -Rappler.com