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[av_heading heading=’ Bacolod councilors wary of bird flu ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY MAE SINGUAY
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BACOLOD City – Councilors urged the local government to beware of the possible entry of the avian influenza in this city.
The Sangguniang Panlungsod asked the Office of the City Agriculturist to be ready with protocols in handling bird flu in case the virus infects local poultry.
The Bureau of Animal Industry confirmed two new cases of avian influenza in Jaen and San Isidro towns in Nueva Ecija, Councilor Sonya Verdeflor said in a resolution the city council approved on Wednesday.
Chicken layers and other fowls within a 1-kilometer radius were culled to stop the virus from spreading, and poultry farmers in these areas were not allowed to raise chickens and ducks until after a 90-day period after international disease control protocols, she said.
Meanwhile, Agriculture secretary Emmanuel Piñol said the ban on the shipment of poultry and poultry products from Luzon and other parts of the country will be lifted within the next two to three weeks if no further bird flu cases are reported, added Verdeflor.
“It is imperative that our City Agriculture Office [is] vigilant in monitoring this situation and should be prepared with protocols in handling live chickens, ducks, dressed chicken, and eggs in case of bird flu to protect our poultry farmers and the poultry industry in Bacolod City,” she said.
For his part, Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the city government will “continue coordinating” with the Agriculture department to keep itself posted with official bulletins.
He insisted the city remains bird flu-free. Quarantine personnel were deployed to seaports and the airport to prevent the entry of infected birds, he added./PN
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