SAN JOSE, Antique – The confiscation of P20,000 worth of pork-based products from Manila that were sold by a restaurant in San Remigio town on May 12 ess legal, the Antique Provincial Veterinary (ProVet) here said.
ProVet chief Dr. Florencio Macuja said the move was in accordance with Provincial Ordinance No. 2020-242.
“Provincial Ordinance No. 2020-242 prohibited the trading of pork-based products anywhere in the country affected by the African swine fever (ASF),” he said.
Rubyliza Leong-on, owner of the East Road Overview Restaurant in Barangay La Union, San Remigio, questioned the act, saying she thought the items were to be returned to the point of origin and would not be confiscated.
In a Facebook post, she also questioned if the confiscated items were indeed disposed.
The ProVet team led by Dr. Marco Rafael Ardamil, in coordination with the Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO) of San Remigio, discovered during their inspection that the restaurant was selling processed food items such as tocino, pork “dinuguan” and pork “chicharon” that were transported from their main branch in Quezon City.
“We confiscated the food items for it came from Quezon City in Luzon where there are cases of ASF,” Ardamil said.
While the ordinance mandates a penalty of not less than P1,000 and not exceeding P5,000 or imprisonment of not less than six months but not exceeding one year or both depending on the discretion of the court, the ProVet opted to only give the violator a reprimand.
However, a fine will already be imposed if a second offense would be committed.
Meanwhile, the confiscated items were burned at the back of the town public market, witnessed by personnel of the MAO and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
Macuja said it was also properly documented as proof, adding that they made sure the food items were properly disposed of as part of their campaign to maintain Antique’s ASF-free status.
“We need to protect our hog industry in the province from possible contamination of ASF,” he said. (Annabel Consuelo Petinglay, PNA/PN)
