• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Confirmed cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) have been recorded in Negros Occidental, with provincial authorities urging local government units (LGUs) and hog raisers to strictly follow disease-control protocols to contain the outbreak.
Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said laboratory tests confirmed ASF infections in samples submitted by at least one LGU, on top of confirmations made by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).
“As of the June 18 report, about one percent of the province’s hog population had been affected, although we have requested updated figures as the number may have increased,” Lacson said.
The governor emphasized the importance of adhering to ASF protocols, including the immediate burial of dead pigs and disinfection of affected areas.
“The first thing is that if there is a mortality, immediately bury the pig and disinfect the area. For those who still have pigs, sell them already,” he said.
Lacson noted that the province would implement the same measures used during previous ASF outbreaks, which he described as successful in allowing the swine industry to recover and repopulate.
“Unfortunately, it was already said before that it will take a while before ASF can be totally eradicated,” he added, urging LGUs to inform residents about the situation.
San Enrique Mayor Jilson Tubillara confirmed that the municipality tested positive for ASF, with laboratory results released on Monday. He said infected hogs were immediately buried to prevent further spread of the disease. Despite the outbreak, many hogs remain in the municipality.
To contain the virus, border control measures have been established, while barangay officials have been directed to strengthen biosecurity practices in their respective areas.
“All barangays are affected,” Tubillara declared, adding that more than 500 hogs have already died due to the disease.
In neighboring La Castellana, Mayor Alme Rhummyla Nicor issued an executive order on June 22 temporarily suspending the entry of live swine, swine semen, pork, and pork-derived products into the municipality as a preventive measure against ASF.
Nicor clarified that the order does not indicate the presence of any animal disease in La Castellana but was imposed to protect the municipality’s swine industry from potential biosecurity threats. Checkpoints have been established at entry points from Negros Oriental and neighboring municipalities, including Isabela and Moises Padilla, to prevent the transport of live hogs into La Castellana.
Negros Occidental suffered heavy losses from ASF and hog cholera in 2023, when nearly 18,000 hog deaths were recorded.
In Moises Padilla, Mayor Ella Celestina Garcia-Yulo ordered a crackdown on the illegal sale of imported meat and meat products following reports that imported pork and poultry products were being sold without the required quarantine certificates.
Through Executive Order No. 293, Garcia-Yulo created a monitoring and apprehension task force tasked with conducting inspections in public markets, supermarkets, and private warehouses.
As a designated “pink zone,” Moises Padilla has intensified preventive measures to protect its hog and livestock industry from ASF and other highly contagious animal diseases.
Meanwhile, Bacolod City Mayor Greg Gasataya reconstituted the “ASF Task Force” due to the continued threat of ASF. In his executive order, Gasataya said there is a need to reinforce city mechanisms on inspection, quarantine, transport regulation, and border control to prevent the entry and movement of ASF-infected hogs, pork, and related products. | GPB
