Ban in Cebu to include ‘mixed’meat

CEBU, Philippines — To strengthen preventive measures, the ban in Cebu Province on live hogs, boar semen, pork and pork-related products from Luzon and countries infected by the African Swine Fever (ASF) virus will now extend to commingled meat.

Yesterday, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia issued Executive Order 23 “Prohibiting the entry of all meat, chicken, fish, or any other food products that have been commingled with pork, pork-related products and by-products from all parts of Luzon.”

The new order also extends to June 30, 2020 the period of the ban on the entry of pork, pork-related products, and by-products to the province.

“It has been confirmed by the National Meat Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture that the ASF virus can spread thru commingling of meat, fish, chicken, processed meat products and other food products with contaminated pork, processed pork, pork-related products, and by-products,” the order reads.

The order states that the regional office of NMIS shall be the authority that determines if there was commingling of food products.

The order also states that “direct importation of any and all kinds of meat, chicken, pork, fish or food products from ASF free countries shall be allowed entry into the Province of Cebu provided that the imported products are accompanied by a Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearance (SPSIC) or the Veterinary Quarantine Clearance/SPS Import Permit from the Bureau of Animal Industry of the Department of Agriculture.”

It states further that all kinds of imported meat, chicken, pork, fish or food products that pass through ports in Luzon will be allowed to enter the province only if the seal of the container van where these products are stored is intact or not tampered with.

ASF is a viral disease that infects pigs and wild boars exclusively. This means that humans and other animals are safe from the strain. However, this does not prevent them from being carriers of the virus since ASF is a transboundary disease.

“So maski na moingon nga dili man na pork, pero og nag commingle na, on the same storage handled by the same people, there lies the danger (So even if it’s not pork, but if it has commingled with pork meat in storage, which is handled by the same people, there is danger),” Garcia said.

She said meat suppliers who wish to enter the Cebu market must deliver their products directly to Cebu and not store the meat in Luzon.

Just last month, during an inspection conducted by the Provincial ASF Task Force, poultry that commingled with meat from Pasig was confiscated along with pork stored by Baliwag Liempo.

“Ang position sa NMIS (National Meat Inspection Service) is that there is already commingling… kung naa man guy commingling sa storage, di man gud ka ka-assure (It is the position of NMIS that there is commingling. If there is commingling in storage, you can’t be assured of safety),” Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Mary Rose Vincoy explained in a press conference on October 21.

Last November 4, Garcia said she decided to extend to June 30 next year the initial 100-day ban on pork and pork-related products from Luzon and the ASF-infected countries following reports of pork products manufactured in Luzon testing positive for ASF.

Garcia assured that the province will lift the ban if the situation is contained even before the ban ends. JMO (FREEMAN)