#12,708
Although the Philippines Reported a 2nd Outbreak Of HPAI H5 Avian Flu last Friday, today Secretary of Agriculture Manny Piñol has announced the lifting of the ban on poultry (outside the quarantine zones) from the island of Luzon, and we have confirmation from the Australian Reference Lab on the virus being an HA H5, but are still waiting for a determination of the NA subtype.
First this statement from the Agricultural Secretary's Facebook page:
DAF BAN ON SHIPMENT OF CHICKEN, DUCKS, EGGS FROM LUZON LIFTED
By Manny Piñol
The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) today lifted the ban on the transport of poultry and poultry products from Luzon to other parts of the country following a report from its bio-security experts that the Avian Influenza cases in San Luis, Pampanga and in San Isidro and Jaen towns in Nueva Ecija have been contained in a seven-kilometer radius.
Earlier today, I signed an Administrative Circular which allowed among others the shipment of dressed chicken, fresh table eggs, cooked duck eggs (balut), day-old chicks, game fowls and others provided these are covered by veterinary certificates issued after tests are conducted by bio-security personnel.
Shipment of fowls, poultry and poultry products coming from inside the 7-kilometer radius of San Luis, Pampanga and the towns of Jaen and San Isidro in Nueva Ecija will not be allowed.
All shipments must be covered by health certificates and quarantine clearances and Quarantine Stations in all airports and ports of the country are directed not to allow passage to poultry and poultry products without the necessary clearances.
The announcement of the lifting of the ban was made after a consultation with stakeholders of the poultry and egg industry in the Agriculture Department Central Office this morning.
The stakeholders forum was facilitated by the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries through the poultry and livestock sectoral led by Dr. Rufina Salas.
The decision to lift the 11-day-old ban which was declared on Aug. 11 following the confirmation of the presence of Avian Influenza virus in farms in San Luis, Pampanga came following the recommendations made by the Avian Influenza Task Force which handled the containment of the problem in Pampanga and Nueva Ecija.
Dr. Enrico Garzon, assistant secretary for livestock and acting director of the Bureau of Animal Industry, and Dr. Arlene Vytiaco reported that cleaning up operations in San Luis town have been completed while the culling operations in Nueva Ecija are almost complete.
With strict quarantine procedures implemented in the 1-kilometer and 7-kilometer radius of the areas affected, the AI Task Force said the problem has been contained in the three towns.
The National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) was also instructed today to make rounds of the outlets of poultry and poultry products and post signages certifying that all those sold in the market are safe to eat.
The Administrative Circular will be sent out to the different Quarantine Stations all over the country and shipment from Luzon could immediately start as soon as the shippers could submit the needed health certificates and veterinary clearances.
It's been 10 days since the Philippines announced their first ever HPAI avian flu outbreak, but according to the following report from the Manila Times, we'll probably have to wait a few more days before the viral culprit is fully identified.
Australian lab result confirms bird flu in Pampanga – agriculture dept
By KENNETH HARE HERNANDEZ on August 22, 2017
(EXCERPT)
Arlene Vytiaco, DA-BAI focal person for avian influenza, said the results verified initial findings in the affected chickens in San Luis town.
“It confirmed our finding at the laboratory. Our test showed that they are positive for avian influenza type A, H5. So our findings are the same as those in Australia,” Vytiaco said.
However, the N subtype is still being verified as the samples needed to be kept in a safe and dry may “There is still no N [sub]type because there are not enough samples and it needs to be propagated to conduct further testing, so that would take one to three days,” she said.
“We would like to know the N [subtype]so we will know what sub-type it is, but our activities will be the same. Whether it will be H5 or N7 or 5, our activities will be the same to contain the virus-like culling,” she added.
(Continue . . . )
As previously discussed, in this part of the world the the `usual suspects' would be H5N1, H5N8, or H5N6 - but as we've seen often with the very promiscuous Asian lineage of HPAI H5 viruses - they can easily spin off other subtypes (H5N2, H5N3, H5N5,H5N9, etc.) through reassortment with local LPAI avian viruses.
