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MANILA, Philippines —   No active bird flu case logged – BAI For the first time in almost a year, the country does not have any ongoing case or outbreak of avian influenza, according to the Bureau of Animal Industry.

The BAI, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), said no positive highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) case was reported from Jan. 4 to 10.

The bureau said there has been no ongoing bird flu case since the completion of culling, depopulation and surveillance activities within a one-kilometer radius of previously affected areas.

This is the first time since February 2024 that the country has not recorded any active bird flu case, the BAI said.

On an annual basis, the number of remaining areas affected by bird flu but do not have active outbreaks has declined. These areas are waiting to be declared bird flu-free.

As of Jan. 10, only 136 barangays in 53 cities and municipalities across nine provinces in five regions were identified as bird flu-affected areas.

Of the cities and municipalities, 51 have no reported cases for more than 90 days while the rest did not have any outbreak for 31 to 60 days.

In the same period last year, 154 barangays in 66 cities and municipalities across 10 provinces in six regions were affected by bird flu, the BAI said.

Bataan, Benguet, Bulacan, Camarines Norte, Kalinga, Laguna, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga and Tarlac as well as Manila are among the remaining bird flu-affected areas.

As of Jan. 10, 17 provinces have been declared bird flu-free by the DA. These are Aurora, Batangas, Cagayan, Camarines Sur, Capiz, Cotabato, Davao del Sur, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, Leyte, Maguindanao del Sur, Pangasinan, Quezon, Rizal, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat.

During the same period last year, only 14 provinces were declared free from avian influenza.