ANTIQUE – Residents in this province are encouraged to patronize local pork to help prevent the entry of products from other places that might be affected by the African Swine Fever (ASF).
Dr. Marco Rafael Ardamil, chief of the Antique Provincial Veterinary (ProVet) Public Health Division, said in an interview yesterday, Dec. 13, that the province is now gearing for reclassification into the pink zone.
It is waiting for the laboratory result of the blood tests on a piggery in Belison that was submitted last week to the Department of Agriculture (DA).
“Belison is the only remaining municipality affected by ASF in 2023,” Ardamil said.
He said that the municipalities of San Jose de Buenavista and Sibalom have been reclassified by the DA into pink or buffer zones.
“I advise tourists and Antiqueños on vacation also to refrain from bringing food items with pork ingredients because these will be confiscated at the airport unless they have ProVet acceptance,” Ardamil said.
Ardamil said that they have personnel assigned at the airport to inspect the food items to safeguard the province from the reoccurrence of ASF that caused millions of damage to its hog industry. (PNA)
