DA chief confirms bird flu in Nueva Ecija poultry farm

FILE: DA Secretary Emmanuel Piñol (Photo: Department of Agriculture/ Facebook)

CABANATUAN CITY, Nueva Ecija — Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol on Friday confirmed that bird flu struck a poultry farm in Barangay Concepcion, Cabiao town in this province, where some 42,000 chickens were culled last November 21.

Speaking before members of Butil Farmers’ Party here, Piñol did not disclose the strain but said it only affects chickens.

He denied allegations of cover-up, explaining that in the past, stories about a similar case in a poultry farm crippled the poultry industry.

Piñol blamed people who sneaked out chickens from affected areas during the first wave of bird flu outbreak into Nueva Ecija for what happened.

Part of the new quarantine protocol, he said, is the removal of the one-kilometer radius zone culling and seven-kilometer radius zone no transport rule. “It’s only in the affected farm,” he said of the quarantine procedures.

To prevent the virus from spreading, Piñol said the DA is working closely with the local government of Cabiao in monitoring poultry products going in and out of the town.

“But the test is being conducted in nearby farms too,” he pointed out.

(PNA)