BACOLOD City – Negros Occidental has seized more pork and its by-products in the past week as it continues to enforce measures against African swine fever (ASF).
The Provincial ASF Task Force has confiscated some P15,822 worth of items from August 6 to 12, according to provincial veterinarian Dr. Renante Decena on Tuesday.
The items were seized from hand-carry and check-in baggage that arrived at Bacolod-Silay Airport and also through monitoring activities in public markets in this city and Sipalay.
Entry of live pigs, pork, and pork products coming from Luzon, Mindanao, and Eastern Samar, which have confirmed cases of the ASF, are still prohibited in Negros Occidental.
A consolidated apprehension report showed that from January 1 to August 12 this year, the task force recovered a total of 907.73 kilograms of assorted pork products worth almost half a million pesos through checkpoints in ports, airports, and local government units.
From August 6 to 12, the quarantine team has inspected 1,591 incoming vehicles and refrigerated containers vans in different ports of entry.
In July 26, the province marked the second year of the creation of the Provincial ASF Task Force, and Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson commended the efforts of stakeholders for sustaining the province’s ASF-free status to protect its P6-billion swine industry.
The Department of Agriculture has tagged Negros Occidental as an ASF-free province, making it one of the most trusted and major suppliers of pigs for slaughter in Luzon and other parts of the country.(PNA/PN)
