February 11, 2019

Philippines temporally blocks pork from Japan over swine fever concerns

African swine fever (ASF) has hit Japan, prompting the Philippines to suspend pork and pork products from the former for now, The Manila Times reported.

The country's Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) has been instructed to impose the ban immediately at all ports of entry in the Philippines, while DA officials continue to validate reports by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), said Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol.

"The quarantine officers are also advised to review their quarantine protocols, including the foot baths installed at the ports of entry and the monitoring of all meat products being brought into the country by tourists," Piñol added.

Japan has recently tightened quarantine measures at airports and seaports to prevent ASF from spreading to China, which has seen several cases of outbreak in past months.

- The Manila Times