MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) has temporarily banned the entry of poultry products from the Netherlands after the European country reported an outbreak of bird flu or bird flu.
In a memorandum, the DA banned the import of Dutch wild birds and their products, including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen with immediate effect.
“Preventing the entry of the HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) virus is necessary to protect the health of the local poultry population,” the order reads.
The agency suspended the processing, evaluation and issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import authorizations. It will only accept shipments from the Netherlands which were in transit, loaded or accepted by the port before the official communication of this order to the Dutch authorities, provided that the products were slaughtered or produced no later than 9 July.
The temporary ban on poultry from the Netherlands was put into effect when Dutch authorities reported to the World Organization for Animal Health on July 24 that there was an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza from under -type H5N1 in Biddinghuizen, Dronten.
The Netherlands is one of the suppliers of meat products to the Philippines. In the first six months of 2023, the European country exported 31.3 million kilograms of imported meat to the country, according to data from the Bureau of Animal Industry. This is equivalent to 5.3 percent of the 590.8 million kg of imported meat that had arrived in the country during the period.
In detail, the Netherlands exported 29.9 million kg of pork and 1.4 million kg of beef. He did not deliver chicken to the archipelago during the period.
Your subscription could not be registered. Try Again.
Your subscription was successful.
Read more
To subscribe to MORE APPLICANT to access The Philippine Daily Inquirer and over 70 titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to news, download as early as 4am and share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
For comments, complaints or inquiries, Contact us.
