CITY OF SAN FERNANDO The Department of Agriculture (DA) Central Luzon on Monday, November 14, declared the entire province of Bataan as "bird flu-free."
DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban, in a memorandum circular, announced that Bataan province is now free from the contagious avian disease.
The agency said this is a result of the joint efforts of local government units, DA Regional Field Office, and Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) in applying effective disease control measures such as stamping out, cleaning and disinfection, and other quarantine activities.
“The risk of further spread from infected premises was effected without delay and more than 40 days have elapsed since the end of the cleanup and disinfection operations and surveillance has been carried out in accordance with the World Organization for Animal Health Terrestrial Animal Health Code and the Agriculture's Avian Influenza Protection Program with the province of Bataan yielding negative avian influenza tests results,” Panganiban said.
In March this year, Bataan province was affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) subtype H5N1 after a backyard mallard duck farm tested positive for the virus.
The local government of Bataan in coordination with DA Regional Field Office III and the BAI, immediately conducted disease investigation, immediate depopulation, cleaning and disinfection, movement restrictions, and surveillance in the affected premises.
Panganiban said the results of subsequent disease monitoring in the one-kilometer and seven-kilometer surveillance zones surrounding the affected farms yielded negative results for influenza type A virus and the last HPAI H5N1 laboratory detection in Bataan was on March 22, 2022.