CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – The Bureau of Animal Industry confirmed Wednesday the detection of bird flu in San Luis town, Pampanga.
In a statement posted in its Facebook page, the BAI said the “highly-pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) strain, specifically A(H5N6),” was detected in a poultry layer or egg-producing farm in the eastern Pampanga town.
A team of veterinarians from the Department of Agriculture-Central Luzon office, the Pampanga provincial veterinary office and the San Luis local government “immediately applied emergency control measures at ‘ground zero’ and conducted disease surveillance around the infected farm” using what it called “one health approach.”
“The team humanely culled a total of 38,701 head of layers and disposed of them properly, employing the protocols under the Avian Influenza Protection Program of the Philippine Government,” said DA-BAI Director Ronnie Domingo, in his report to Agriculture Secretary William Dar.
Domingo said that all personnel involved in the disease control measures were strictly monitored by the municipal health office of San Luis, even as he assured the public that the A(H5N6) has not been reported and detected among broilers, the primary source of poultry meat.
“Once again, we commend the men and women of the DA-BAI and DA-RFO3 for their continued strong partnership with the local government officials and veterinarians in Pampanga for successfully managing, controlling and containing the bird flu incidence in San Luis,” said Secretary Dar.
Initial field investigation discovered the presence in San Luis of migratory birds, which have been associated with bird flu, the BAI said.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Domingo said, has identified 117 important bird areas in the country, and about 150,000 migratory birds’ nest and breed annually in Central Luzon.
This, even as he urged poultry raisers in the region to protect and shield their farms from the entry of migratory birds, and more importantly immediately report any unusual poultry mortalities. —With DA-BAI StratComms
