ILOILO City – The city government has extended its ban on pork from Luzon to June 30, 2020 in a bid to keep this metropolis free from the African swine fever (ASF).
In Executive Order No. 003-2020, Mayor Jerry Treñas also banned live pigs, hog carcasses, pork products and by-products originating from and/or processed in Luzon and in countries with ASF cases.
“There are still cases of ASF in the country, particularly in Luzon, thus a possibility of it reaching Region 6 and cause high hog mortality and affect the city’s food security,” according to Treñas.
ASF causes high fever, loss of appetite, hemorrhages, and death among domestic and wild pigs, thus it is a threat primarily to the hog industry, then to industries that deal with pork.
There is no known vaccine against ASF but it does not pose a health risk to humans.
EO No. 003-2020 amended the Oct. 10, 2019 EO of the city mayor imposing a similar ban for a period of 90 days only or up to the second week of January 2020.
In extending the ban, Treñas cited new ASF cases in Pangasinan and Pampanga despite the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) vigorous enforcement of the “1-7-10 Protocol” due to illegal pork traders.
Under the protocol, quarantine checkpoints are set up in areas within a one-kilometer radius of suspected farms — monitoring the movement of live pigs, pork, and pork products. Within a seven-kilometer radius, authorities are conducting surveillance and limiting animal movement. On the other hand, farm owners within the 10-kilometer radius are mandated to report any disease to the DA.
It was in December last year that the City Veterinary Office recommended a permanent or an extension of the 90-day ban. It pointed out that the city remains sufficient in pork anyway, produced locally or sourced from Mindanao and Cebu.
In ordering a 90-day ban in October last year, Treñas said ASF reaching this city is possible. Iloilo City is a major entry/exit point of inter-regional conveyance through the Iloilo International Airport in Cabatuan, Iloilo and Iloilo International Port in Barangay Loboc, Lapuz district.
Iloilo City, added Treñas, is No. 3 in terms of frequency of ship calls annually (11,853), No. 4 in cargo (491,719 metric tons) and No. 4 in passenger traffic (2.4 million).
“There is an urgent need to adopt preventive measures to protect the hog industry of Region 6,” stressed Treñas./PN
