DA lifts import ban on Japanese poultry

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) lifted the temporary import ban on Japanese poultry products, including live birds, after the East Asian country resolved its bird flu cases.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. issued Memorandum Order (MO) 31 formalizing the lifting of the temporary ban on the importation of domestic and wild birds their products including poultry eat, day old chicks, eggs and semen from Japan.

Citing the official self-declaration report submitted by Tokyo to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), the DA said Japan has resolved all its cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza and it has not recorded any additional outbreaks after June 2.

The DA noted that Japan is now free from HPAI in accordance to the provisions of Chapter 10.4 of the WOAH Terrestrial Animal Health Code that outline the guidelines on bird flu cases.

“Based on the evaluation of the DA, the risk for contamination from importing live poultry, poultry meat, day old chicks, eggs and semen is negligible,” Tiu Laurel said in his order published recently.

Tiu Laurel imposed a temporary import ban on Japanese poultry products last Jan. 17 after Tokyo confirmed H5N1 HPAI cases in Kashima City, Saga Prefecture last November 2023.

The government imposes a temporary import ban on countries that have confirmed bird flu cases to prevent the entry of diseases, especially transboundary ones like bird flu, in the country and protect the local poultry industry from such threats.