Department of Agriculture eyes zoning plan to curb ASF

MANILA,Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) is establishing a national zoning plan to compartmentalize areas affected by African swine fever (ASF) as the government scrambles to contain and eventually eradicate the dreaded disease.

At a briefing yesterday, ASF Task Force head Reildrin Morales said the DA is now fast-tracking the zoning plan which will be discussed at the next Cabinet meeting.

“The national zoning plan is for the whole of the Visayas and Mindanao plus Mimaropa which will be declared free zones since Luzon will be the containment zone. Within that containment zone, we still have the protected zone,” he pointed out.?Central Luzon and Calabarzon remain to be the infected zones.

“This zoning plan will impact the market, that’s why it is not the first thing that we address because like Bulacan and Pampanga, they will have very limited access on their products once we start the system,” Morales said.

He added that zoning is “a scientific method already used when we eradicated the FMD (foot and mouth disease).”

“The progressive zoning approach, we will be doing the same now to isolate the areas with no infection,” Morales also said.?The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations defines zoning as the proclamation of geographical areas in which specific disease control actions are to be carried out. This is usually done in the form of concentric ‘circles’ around known or suspected foci of infection, with the most intensive disease control activities in the inner zones.

“Zoning will impact not only commercial farms and backyard farms but also all sectors including trading markets. Developing zones should be thorough and we are working with experts from the local hog industry to develop these zones,” Morales said.

In Angeles City, Mayor Carmelo Lazatin padlocked the Chotchot Meat Dealer, described as an “illegal slaughterhouse” in Barangay Lourdes North, and ordered the filing of charges against its owners or operators after inspectors confiscated 1.5 tons of “double dead” meat and 12 pigs.

City Meat Inspection Division personnel reported that eight of the 12 pigs were contaminated with the ASF virus. The rest were already dead.

Acting Pangasinan veterinarian Jovito Tabarejos said containing the ASF and declaring the province as ASF-free is a long process and will not happen overnight.

Surveillance and inspections, he added, will continue in the province.

The arbitrary ban on swine and processed pork products continues to be imposed in both Iloilo city and province in a bid to control the spread of ASF.

Mekeni products  tagged with ASF

Meanwhile, Pampanga-based manufacturer Mekeni Food Corp. might have its license to operate revoked if investigation proves that it was negligent in processing products.

At a joint briefing yesterday, the DA and Department of Health (DOH)-Food and Drug Administration (FDA) confirmed that the set of samples of skinless longganisa and picnic hotdog taken from Mekeni tested positive for ASF, based on tests conducted by the DA Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Central Luzon.

The DA Bureau of Animal Industry Veterinary Laboratory Division conducted two validation tests as requested by the manufacturer. But the same products tested positive for the ASF viral DNA.

Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo said the DA and DOH are now organizing a composite team to do further investigation to determine the source of raw meat used for processing of the Mekeni products.

“When the FDA went to the factory they actually have complete documents but obviously there’s something wrong because of the ASF-infected meat that they used,” Domingo said. 

Last Oct. 26, Mekeni initiated a voluntary recall of all its pork-based products in various selling areas nationwide. These products are currently quarantined and a batch sampling has been submitted to an independent laboratory for ASF testing.

In its official statement issued yesterday, Mekeni found the incident unfortunate as it maintained that it has always fully complied with all regulations and certifications set by the government.

“Despite this unfortunate development, we assure government that we will continue to cooperate in its ongoing investigation to determine the source of ASF. We will also actively support the review of current protocols on issuing certifications for both local and imported raw meats,” Mekeni said.

Operations of Mekeni’s pork-based processing area had also been suspended and the facility has been cleansed and disinfected. A third-party company had also been engaged to do swabbing and testing of the facility before it resumes operations. – With Ding Cervantes, Eva Visperas, Jennifer Rendon

The FDA reiterated that those who have eaten Mekeni products over the last few weeks should not worry as these pose no hazard to humans. Those who still have stocks at home could return these to their dealers who, in turn, will return it to the manufacturer for disposal.

“They can get their money back as these are recalled products and they are refunded for that,” Domingo said.

The FDA is conducting inspections of all processed meat manufacturers in the country. So far, it has inspected 63 out of 178 licensed facilities.

“Our regulatory officers go to the factory and look at cleanliness and their process as well as the documentations like NMIS (National Meat Inspection Service) certificate which is required to know their raw materials. So far, all 63 have passed,” Domingo said. – With Ding Cervantes, Eva Visperas, Jennifer Rendon