The Department of Agriculture (DA) has reimposed a ban on imports of domestic and wild birds, as well as poultry products from South Dakota in the United States following an outbreak of avian influenza in the area.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. ordered the prohibition that included eggs, semen for artificial insemination, day-old chicks and other poultry products from the state.
This move will prevent the entry of bird flu virus in the Philippines and protect the local sector, Laurel said in DA Memorandum Order 04, series 2025, which he signed Wednesday.
US veterinary authorities confirmed on December 17, 2024, several outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza in South Dakota affecting domestic birds.
The outbreak was also confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa.
Laurel directed the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to suspend the processing and issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances for the importation of domestic and wild birds from South Dakota.
He also mandated all veterinary quarantine officers and inspectors nationwide to confiscate commodities imported from South Dakota, except those that were already in transit or arrived at local ports after the issuance of the ban.
Poultry products from South Dakota that are exempted from the import ban are those that have been slaughtered on or before November 13, 2024, or those that are heat-treated.
Prior to this move, the DA lifted a similar ban covering the same products from South Dakota in August 2024.
According to BAI data, the Philippines imported 435.5 million kilos of chicken meat from January to November 2024.
It purchased a total of 145.7 million kg of chicken from the US, or 33.5 percent of the country’s total chicken imports, for the period, the data showed.
However, no data was available on the volume that came from the state of South Dakota. Laurel did not also say when the ban would last.
DA’s monitoring of public markets as of Wednesday showed that whole dressed chicken retailed at P170 to P240 per kg.