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Monday, March 14, 2005
Poultry growers hold nat'l industry meet
By Stephen Capillas
* Bird flu virus among concerns to be addressed
* Concepcion urges measures aimed at propelling RP poultry industry to global competitiveness
REPRESENTATIVES from the country's poultry industry, the Department of Agriculture and the National Meat Inspection Commission (NMIC) would gather on March 22 to discuss ways of containing the bird flu virus sweeping the world.
In a recent press conference, Swift Foods Inc. chairman Jose Concepcion made the disclosure to local media adding that while the country is generally bird-flu free it is better to maintain it that way rather than risk having it enter through the backdoor.
The Swift Foods chairman arrived in Cagayan de Oro last Wednesday to meet with Vice President Noli de Castro and announce the creation of a specialized multi-sectoral committee.
Concepcion said at least two US firms have readied vaccines for the bird flu virus but these are expensive. He lamented that some media in part are aggravating the situation by reporting sensationalized stories that have little based in fact.
He said there have been reports that the bird flu virus was transmitted to humans in countries like Vietnam causing fears of a pandemic but when verified it wasn't true.
"As a result of these unverified reports poultry growers suffered and Swift Foods Inc. suffered a 40 percent drop in its profits)," he told local media.
Earlier Concepcion said a committee was formed that would provide checks and measures in dealing with the bird flu menace sweeping most of Asia and other parts of the world.
Hard hit
Concepcion said the task force would be comprised of officials from the Departments of Agriculture (DA) and Health (DOH) as well as representatives from the private sector.
He said they will help decide and monitor eight "poultry zones" which would all have one entry and one exit point for all poultry products manufactured in the country.
These poultry zones are in Luzon, Bicol, Mindoro, Palawan, Panay, Negros, Eastern Visayas and Mindanao. Concepcion said these poultry control zones would help keep out the bird flu virus and ensure the continued development of the domestic P40 billion poultry industry.
Concepcion said it is important that the local government units (LGUs) in Mindanao as well as in other parts of the country to help monitor and prevent the incidence of bird flu.
He said if there are infected fowl then these birds should be buried deep and a seven-kilometer radius be set up as quarantine in order to eliminate the virus and prevent it from infecting the rest of the fowls bred by growers.
Aside from this Concepcion also called on the Bureau of Customs to reduce if not eliminate the importation of fowls suspected to be infected with the bird flu virus.
With these and other measures, Concepcion said there is little reason why the country's poultry industry cannot be globally competitive.
"Thailand which had been hard hit by the bird flu virus is fast recovering and is considering to expand production to one billion chickens. We are bird flu free so we can compete with them," he said.
The Swift Food Inc. chairman said there is a huge market to be tapped by the country such as the nearly two billion Muslims around the world whose demand for halal chicken grows yearly.
(March 14, 2005 issue)
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