Philippines bans Bhutan poultry products exports, lifts France and Spain

Poultry products from Bhutan are not allowed to enter the Philippines after an outbreak of bird flu was reported in that South Asian country.

In a memorandum order issued on March 4, the Agriculture department said it has imposed a temporary ban on the importation of domestic and wild birds, poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen from Bhutan.

Specifically, the H5N1 strain had been detected in chickens in the province of Chhukha, the notice said.

"There is a need to prevent the entry of virus to protect the health of the local poultry population. As such, we are banning the importation of domestic and wild birds, including day-old chicks, eggs and semen from Bhutan," the notice read.

Furthermore, the department has ordered the immediate suspension of the processing of applications to import these items and will likewise confiscate all shipments of poultry and poultry products into the country originating from Bhutan.

The Philippines, however, does not import poultry or livestock products from Bhutan, data from the Bureau of Agriculture Statistics (BAS) showed.

At the same time, the Agriculture department said it is lifting the ban it imposed on poultry products from France and Spain on December 21 and July 2, 2009, respectively. France last year reported cases of low pathogenic avian influenza while Spain reported cases of high pathogenic avian influenza.

The department said both countries have respectively regained their bird flu-free country status.

Data from the BAS showed that the country imported 548 million kilogrammes of poultry and livestock product worth $589 million last year. Of that amount, 17 million kilogrammes of products worth US$15 million were from Spain while 41 million kilogrammes worth US$50.55 million came from France.