CEBU, Philippines — Members of the African Swine Fever (ASF) Task Force confiscated another shipment of pork products from Eastern Visayas at Pier 4 in Cebu City last Wednesday.
Dr. Mary Rose Vincoy, provincial veterinarian and co-chair of Cebu’s ASF Task Force, said the shipment violated the Executive Order No. 27 of Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia which bans the entry of all pork products from Region 8.
Vincoy said the confiscated products include three styrobox of pork siomai and pork siopao from Palo, Leyte. These were allegedly intended for delivery to Lapu-Lapu City when the ASF Task Force intercepted it at Pier 4 on January 22.
Vincoy, however, could not give the value of the seized pork products because the records were at the Veterinary Quarantine Office.
"For distribution to sa Lapu-Lapu City," Vincoy said.
Vincoy said the confiscated products are up for destruction at the pier area. She said they will also include in the destruction the pork cubes the ASF Task Force had confiscated in Consolacion yesterday.
As part of Cebu’s precautionary measures to prevent the entry of ASF virus, Garcia ordered the ban on pork products from Eastern Visayas following the region’s lifting of their own ban on pork products from Luzon, where confirmed cases of ASF had been recorded.
Also banned in Cebu are pork products from Luzon. FPL (FREEMAN)