DAVAO CITY -- The regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA) has identified seven sites to establish quarantine checkpoints in Davao Region as a preventive measure against entry of Avian Influenza (AI) or bird flu contaminated products.
DA’s Avian Influenza coordinator Dr. Dannie Apelo said the Avian Influenza Protection Program Task Force Probinsiya has identified sites for quarantine checkpoints on Km. 80 and Kinuskusan in Sulop town and Malalag, Davao del Sur; Buda, Davao City; Talaingod in Davao del Norte; Monkayo in Compostela Valley; Sta. Maria in Davao Occidental; and, Boston town in Davao Oriental.
The Task Force was already activated last Tuesday and held initial meetings to plan out measures against AI contamination in the region.
Apelo said the establishment of quarantine checkpoint is just one of the preventive measures to ensure no contaminated poultry and other fowls enter Davao Region. This is also where technicians take blood samples.
He said no poultry products are allowed at the checkpoint if the transporter cannot show veterinary certification and shipping permit. DA has already developed information materials about the bird flu; do's and don'ts on avoiding bird flu; and warning on the transport of poultry products.
Davao Region, which has the biggest poultry producers like Vitarich, San Miguel, Magnolia, Bounty, and some independent growers, remained AI or bird flu free.
Apelo said the entry of chicken and its by-products from Luzon are not accepted in Davao, which has an excess supply of poultry products. Davao Region has a strong poultry industry where it ranked second in Mindanao and 6th in the country. Northern Mindanao is top producer in the island.
Following the bird-flu outbreak in Pampanga, Apelo said DA central office has issued a memorandum circular temporarily banning the export of chicken, poultry meat, manure, broilers’ semen from Visayas and Mindanao.
On August 24, DA and veterinarians from the local government units with technicians will take blood samples at poultry farms. This will be followed on August 29 and September 4.
Earlier, Apelo said DA is also conducting surveillance and takes blood sampling of birds and fowl in so-called hotspot areas in Davao, Carmen and Dujali towns in Davao del Norte and Malalag in Davao Occidental where migratory birds from China fly-in in September and fly-out in March.
Apelo said DA in Region 11 continuously monitors the entry of migratory birds to the Davao Region in September when the winter months set in until March when birds fly out from the Philippines. Migratory birds come to the Philippines because of the country’s tropical climate. These migratory birds fly to the Philippines during the winter months usually from China. (Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA)
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