August 8, 2007

Philippines bans poultry, live bird imports from Nebraska, Virginia

The confirmation of bird flu in Nebraska and Virginia in the United States has the  Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) has banned temporarily all imports of domestic and wild birds along with poultry products from these states.

The DA said the ban is based on a July 23 report submitted by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the US Department of Agriculture, on the presence of the avian influenza virus H5N1 in Virginia and H7N9 in Nebraska.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said the embargo is an assurance to protect human health and the poultry industry in the Philippines, which has remained free of bird flu.

The ban covers all "domestic and wild birds and their products, including day-old chicks and eggs," he said.