BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – At least P20,000 worth of pork by-products from Iloilo were either confiscated or “returned to sender” following the ban ordered in Negros Occidental on the entry of pork and pork by-products from the neighboring province due to African swine fever (ASF) cases.
Dr. Placeda Lemana, acting head of the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO), said the products that arrived were intercepted in Bacolod City’s BREDCO port.
Among the confiscated pork products were bacon, ground pork, pork tocino, and pork molo.
“Our quarantine inspectors are alert and are strictly doing the inspection of all arriving goods through our ports and seaports,” Lemana said.
She also said the shippers were willing to bring back the goods, so most were returned to the senders in Iloilo, while the others were confiscated for destruction.
The acting PVO head also said quarantine inspectors are augmented by a team from Bacolod City and are stationed at the BREDCO and Banago ports and in the city’s Sum-ag village.
“Our LGUs and other stakeholders in the swine industry are all vigilant that in case of any suspected animal diseases, they immediately report to us,” Lemana added.
On Friday, Oct. 14, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson issued two memorandums ordering a ban on the entry of pork and pork by-products from Panay island and Guimaras.
This comes after the town of Oton in Iloilo reported the first case of ASF.
Lacson has ordered the Provincial ASF Task Force to conduct rigid and stringent screening and inspection of incoming shipments of live animals and pork products.
The task force is also ordered to conduct checkpoints to intercept and control the movement of live animals, pork, and pork by-products entering the province and confiscate any undocumented shipments.
All transport carriers, upon arrival at the province’s seaports, must undergo mandatory and regular disinfection.
Hog raisers in Negros Occidental are also ordered to report any unusual mortalities among their stock to ensure prompt and immediate response.
Negros Occidental is one of the top backyard hog producers in the country, with an industry pegged at more than P6 billion.
For three years, Negros Occidental has prohibited the entry of live pigs and pork by-products from Luzon, Mindanao and parts of the Visayas to protect the local hog industry./PN
