DA bans birds, poultry from Canada due to bird flu
Manila (12 October) -- In a memorandum issued on October 3, 2007, the Department of Agriculture (DA) imposed a temporary ban on the entry of domestic and wild birds along with poultry and its products from Canada following reports of an avian influenza (AI) or bird flu virus infection in that country.
The ban covers domestic and wild birds and their products, including day-old chicks, eggs and semen. The immediate suspension of the issuance of veterinary quarantine clearances (VQCs) to all imports covering these products from Saskatchewan, Canada has been implemented.
Based on a report by the world animal health organization Office International des Epizooties (OIE), the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus or H7N3 virus was detected in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada.
The DA has ordered the stoppage and confiscation of all shipments of poultry and poultry products into the country originating from Saskatchewan by all veterinary quarantine officers or inspectors at all major ports.
The DA has imposed a similar ban on all live bird and poultry imports from the states of Nebraska and Virginia in the US, Korea and the United Kingdom.
The Philippines has remained free of bird flu ever since the bird flu virus strain resurfaced in Asia in 2003. It is one of only three AI-free countries in Southeast Asia, the two others being Brunei and Singapore. (PIA) [top]
