SAN JOSE, Antique – The province of Antique is still negative for the bird flu virus as of Monday, based on the result of blood samples that were subjected to laboratory examination by the Department of Agriculture (DA) central office.
Antique Provincial Veterinary (ProVet) Office head Dr. Marco Rafael Ardamil said test results of 72 blood samples from ducks and chicken were released by the DA central office on May 27.
The samples were taken from Sibalom, which has the biggest number of poultry and livestock animals in the province, on April 18 to 20 by the DA Regional Field Office 6 Regulatory Division and ProVet staff.
Amid the negative status, the temporary ban stands on the entry of all live domestic and wild birds, poultry products and by-products, including its meat, semen, and manure from all regions into the province.
Gov. Rhodora Cadiao, upon the advice of ProVet, issued Executive Order (EO) No. 58 on May 16 extending the ban that was first issued as EO 23 on March 16.
“Veterinary quarantine personnel assigned at points of entries, provincial borders, and ports are hereby authorized to conduct regular inspection to incoming passengers, vehicles, poultry, poultry products and by-products and deny the entry or order ‘return to origin’ on banned products, confiscate or condemn the same should the shipper or owner fail to ship back such products,” EO 58 states.
Ardamil said since the implementation of the twin orders, they have not yet confiscated any banned product in borders located in the municipalities of Libertad and Pandan in the north and Hamtic and Anini-y in the south. (PNA)
