Philippine Hog News:

[mikey]

Monday, February 02, 2009Print This Page
DoH Issues Warning Against Salmonella-tainted Pork
THE PHILIPPINES - The Department of Health (DoH) in Eastern Visayas has warned people about pork infected with salmonella bacteria.



Health officials have urged consumers to buy only pork meat that was certified by the National Meat Inspection Services (NMIS), in the wake of reports that Salmonella infected hundreds of hogs in one Samar town alone, said Boyd Cerdo, regional sentinel nurse of the Department of Health for Eastern Visayas.

Salmonella is harmful to humans and can cause diarrhea. Humans can contract salmonella by eating the meat of infected animals, Cerdo said.

“Salmonella bacteria are present in the intestines of the infected animal. For this reason, we at the Department of Health strongly advise against its consumption,” he said.

The regional office of the Department of Health has reported that salmonella has infected about 750 pigs from various villages of Sta. Rita town in Samar.

Eighty-four of these hogs were confirmed to have died due to the bacteria, reports Inquirer.net. The Department of Health said the emergence of the bacteria could have been caused by poor sanitation, contaminated feeds, improper care of animals and even the bad weather condition.

Cerro also warned that the waste of the sick pigs could also contaminate water sources, since some of these were stray animals.

“That is why, we urged the Department of Agriculture to intensify its campaign [against the infected hogs], especially on its quarantine procedure,” Cerro said.

Since Salmonella in pigs was detected in the region last December, the health department had not monitored persons getting sick due to the bacteria from affected pigs, Cerro said.

The National Meat Inspection Services, an agency of the Department of Agriculture, earlier received reports that salmonella affected pigs in other towns like in Burauen, Dagami, both in Leyte and even Tacloban City.

But these cases had yet to be confirmed, NMIS supervising officer Doctor Claro Dennis Morantte said.

Morantte said health inspectors in the region were ordered to report immediately any occurrence of the bacteria in their respective areas.

The NMIS strictly prohibited clandestine slaughtering of hogs, he said.

“We have also put up some check points, particularly in Sta. Rita, to control the movements of those animals,” Morantte added.

The NMIS also recommended the isolation of pigs showing symptoms of the disease that include the loss of appetite, diarrhea and fever ranging from 40 degrees Celsius up to 42 degrees Celsius.

[mikey]

 Four more farm workers infected with Ebola Reston
[03 February 2009] Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III confirmed that four more individuals have tested positive for Ebola Reston virus antibodies, bringing the total to five. The four new cases were from pig farms in Bulacan, Pangasinan and Valenzuela City, and a slaughterhouse in Pangasinan. The first who tested positive was a backyard pig farmer from Valenzuela City. Mr Duque reiterates that there is no cause for alarm as all five individuals are healthy and have not been sick in the previous year. Based on initial findings, the five individuals got exposed by directly handling infected pigs. 
 
 
 

[mikey]

Salmonella infection hit pigs in Eastern Visayas
[04 February 2009] The Philippine Department of Agriculture is calling on local government units in Eastern Visayas after reports the 760 pigs in the town of Sta Rita in Samar province have been infected with salmonella, 84 of which have died. The DA has recommended a ban on the movement of pigs from infected to non-infected areas, isolation, treatment and therapy for infected animals, ban on slaughtering of sick pigs, and setting up of checkpoints in strategic places to ensure that the infection in contained.

[mikey]

Friday, February 06, 2009Print This Page
Close Monitoring for Ebola Virus in the Philippines
PHILIPPINES - Authorities have increased the level of monitoring for Ebola Reston virus following the infection of four people with the virus.



Veterinary authorities in Misamis Oriental have told Sun Star of the Philippines that they are closely monitoring signs of Ebola Reston in the province, as four people have been reported to have contracted the rare virus through pig-to-human transmission.

Dr Alfonso Ramosa, the province's veterinary chief, said they are being extra cautious about Ebola Reston – first discovered among monkeys in Luzon in 1989 – because "we could not specifically tell the symptoms and effect of the Ebola virus on hogs."

He said they are closely coordinating with the Department of Health (DOH) and Department of Agriculture in monitoring the disease for immediate containment.

The province's livestock industry is still reeling from last year's hog cholera outbreak, which killed over 2,000 pigs. Hundreds of pigs also died in Cagayan de Oro.

The outbreak led to a massive vaccination program all over Region 10, in which at least 34,000 pigs in Misamis Oriental alone were vaccinated.

Dr Ramosa said Ebola Reston may not be fatal to humans unlike cholera, but immediate prevention was still imperative as the virus strain may evolve into lethal subtypes.

Three of the Ebola virus's five sub-types are associated with deadly haemorrhagic fever in humans; two other subtypes, including the Reston, are not, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Health Secretary, Francisco Duque III, said on 30 January there are now five known cases of possible pig-to-human transmission of the virus after a backyard hog raiser from a northern Manila suburb became the first confirmed case this month.

An initial report said that none of the five men wore protective clothing and all had direct contact with sick pigs, according to Mr Duque.

Ebola Reston has not been known to cause serious illness among humans. At least 25 people in the Philippines have been infected with the virus by monkeys, but only one victim exhibited mild flu-like symptoms.

WHO's Dr Julie Hall said the five cases in the Philippines "increase the likelihood” of pig-to-human transmission of the virus, but investigators were not yet certain. She said all five people are now virus-free.

"They are not infectious, they therefore do not need to be quarantined," she told Sun Star.

While the virus appears to pose low risks to humans, Dr Hall said the government must implement strict measures such as quick reporting of sick or dying pigs and preventing the sale of illegally slaughtered meat to keep the virus from spreading among the swine population.

The government has already invited experts from WHO, Food and Agriculture Organization, and World Organization for Animal Health early this month to conduct a study on the health risks of the virus, first found in pigs in the country in October.

The discovery not only marked the first time the virus has been found outside of monkeys, but also the first time it has been found in swine, a food-producing animal.

Health officials were trying to locate anyone who may have had contact with the five men, concludes the Sun Star report.

[mikey]

Monday, February 09, 2009Print This Page
Salmonella Infection in Samar Hogs Under Control
THE PHILIPPINES - It is considered that the cases of salmonella infection of hogs in Santa Rita town in Samar province are now "under control," reported Dr. Andrew Orais, Regional Livestock Coordinator.



"There were no report until this time of sick pigs from the area. We are optimistic that the cases are now controlled," said Mr Orais.

Records have indicated that since December last year 84 pigs have died and almost 772 hogs were affected. Twenty-five others were found to have been slaughtered by owners upon detection of the symptoms of the disease.

The cases affected seven barangays of Santa Rita.

"We have been conducting a series of animal health missions in the municipality. So far 334 pigs had been treated, 252 were given prophylaxis and 87 were vaccinated,” Mr Orais disclosed.

According to Filipino news agency, ABS-CBN News, he said that based on their assessment, at least 90 per cent of the swine that were treated “have recovered."

“Cases of deaths could have been prevented if only suspected animals were reported at once and consequently given treatment. We encourage the hog raisers to immediately contact the nearest veterinary or agriculture office once they observe manifestations of the disease,” he stressed.

He said that after receiving reports of hog mortalities in Barangay Manunca in Santa Rita last December, “we immediately conducted an investigation in the area.”

Laboratory tests of liver and tissue samples from the affected animals were found positive of salmonella infection and not hog cholera. Hog infected with salmonella bacteria exhibit clinical signs such as, loss of appetite, high fever, diarrhoea, nasal discharge and conjunctivitis.

"We implemented the so-called biosecurity measures in order to prevent the spread of the disease to non-affected areas, we recommended a 30-day strict quarantine regulation in Santa Rita. This means, in particular, that movement of hogs will be regulated through several checkpoints installed at strategic locations. Likewise, we proposed banning the slaughter of sick animals,” he stated.

Through the Quick Response Team of DA and with the help of local officials, certain prevention and control measures were implemented to control the spread of the disease.

“But until this time we are intensifying our information campaign focused on proper management practices in backyard swine raising, observance of good hygiene and proper disposal of dead animals.

"We also advise residents, especially hog owners, that if they observe something wrong with their pigs to kindly report it immediately to the nearest municipal agriculturist officer for proper action,” he added.

The infection among the hogs was detected December last year and by early January, DA officials confirmed it as salmonella infection and not hog cholera as was initially thought of.

Among factors that reportedly trigger the infection were feeds contamination, changes in weather conditions, continuous rains, no proper housing and sanitation and poor nutrition.

[mikey]

Monday, February 09, 2009Print This Page
Corn Shortage Likely to Up Pork and Chicken Prices
THE PHILIPPINES - An agricultural lawmaker has warned of possible increases in the price of pork and chicken as the country faces a shortage of corn.



According to AGAP party-list group Rep. Nicanor Briones, the shortage of corn would definitely have an impact on the price of pork, chicken and eggs since corn comprises 50 per cent of the feeds animal raisers use.

“As it is now, there is a price hike on chicken and pork and it will continue to increase if there will be a corn shortage,” Briones said.

Moreover, corn prices increased in January to between P25 and P28 a kilo from P12 to P13 a kilo, reports The Manila Times.

However, Briones said the price of corn went down to P18 a kilo this month because of the importation of 100,000 metric tons of young corn from Brazil and 120,000 metric tons of feed wheat from Ukraine.

He said the country would import more corn, 62,500 metric tons this month and 187,500 metric tons from March to May to meet the demand until the second quarter of the year.

He added that corn is being pegged at 600,000 metric tons in the coming months.

According to Briones, the original plan was to course the privately financed importation through the National Food Authority (NFA) to expedite the process and minimize, if not lift, the 35-percent tariff duty on imports.

But NFA imposes a fixed tariff of P4 for a kilo of corn, which is not beneficial to the farmers especially when the price of corn in the world market has gotten really low.

The Department of Agriculture has said NFA should have a buffer stock of 75,000 metric tons to 100,00 metric tons of corn to shield the farmers from shortages and possible unscrupulous hoarding.

In light of this development, Briones has asked the Agriculture department to bring down the fixed tariff to P2 a kilo to help the poor farmers, and avoid the subsequent increases in the price of pork and chicken.

[mikey]

Tuesday, February 10, 2009Print This Page
More Than 200 Hogs Die in Cholera Outbreak
THE PHILIPPINES - An outbreak of cholera killed at least 240 hogs in the southern Philippine province of North Cotabato, a health official reported yesterday.



The outbreak was detected in the remote villages near the Malitubog River in the townships of Alamada, Aleosan, and Midsayap, according to Dr. Enrico Garzon, a local veterinary officer.

Garzon said hog traders and raisers in the region have been informed of what they would do to counter the disease.

"We suspect contaminated water caused the outbreak," Garzon said.

Also known as Classical Swine Fever (CSF), hog cholera is a contagious disease transmitted through direct contact between healthy swine and infected swine.

Local officials warned people against eating meat from infected animals, as antibiotics used to cure them could be harmful to human beings.

The cholera broke out months after health officials found a strain of Ebola virus among hogs at some northern farms in the country. It was the first time in the world that the Ebola virus was found on the swine, a food-producing animal category.

Last month, the Philippine health authorities also reported that three pig farm workers and a slaughterhouse worker have been found infected with the Ebola-Reston virus.

Ebola-Reston, unlike its African counterparts which are proven deadly to humans, was first found on monkeys shipped from the Philippines to Reston, Virginia, the United States in 1989.

[mikey]

Wednesday, February 11, 2009Print This Page
China Bans Filipino Pork Imports
BEIJING - China's top quality supervisor has banned imports of Philippine pork products after the island country reported finding of Ebola-Reston virus in four pig herds on its Luson Island at the end of last year.



It was the first time the lethal virus was discovered in livestock.

All pork products from Philippine already at Chinese ports should be turned back or destroyed, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (GAQSIQ) said in an online announcement on Wednesday.

The administration also said no to pigs or pork products coming to China via delivery and travelers. Pork products found on foreign ships, planes or trains staying in the country will be frozen.

At the same time, the administration urged people from Philippines having symptoms such as fever, muscle pain, blood loss or fetter to report to quarantine institutes and seek medical help as soon as possible.

Ebola virus, first found in the 1960s, has four types. It could communicate among people via sweat, blood and saliva and cause fevers with a death rate over 80 per cent. There has been few reports of human deaths from Ebola-Reston type so far.


 

[mikey]

Thursday, February 12, 2009Print This Page
DA Probes Unknown Disease Affecting Hogs
THE PHILIPPINES - The Department of Agriculture (DA) office in the region said it has noted sporadic cases of a hog disease in 18 towns and two cities in Eastern Visayas and is already investigating its cause.



In the province of Leyte, DA said there had been reports of sick hogs in the city of Tacloban as well as in towns of Babatngon, Jaro, Alang-alang, Sta. Fe, Palo, Pastrana, Dagami, Buraeun, Tabontabon, La Paz, Mayorga, Abuyog and Dulag.

In the province of Southern Leyte, the disease was also noted in some hogs in the town of Sogod while in Samar it was observed in Catbalogan City, Daram and Sta. Rita.

In the province of Northern Samar, there were 16 cases of sick hogs reported as of Monday in five villages in Lope de Vega town while 20 were reported in Catarman.

Clinical signs of the sick hogs reportedly included loss of appetite, weakness, presence of nasal discharge and fever, reports ABS-CBN News.

Authorities have not yet established the nature of the disease observed in the sick hogs but they suspect it to be a viral infection.

“Hog cholera is endemic in the region. But it could also be viral flu or other types of viral infection,“ said Dr. Leo Mira of the Animal Quarantine Division of DA.

Mira further stressed that they have yet to confirm their suspicion through the result of laboratory tests of blood, urine and fecal samples of the sick animals.

He also clarified that the disease should not cause alarm to humans as it is only confined to the animals. Treatment was also given to the sick animals and he said most of them have responded.

DA has earlier declared the salmonellosis cases in hogs in Sta. Rita town in Samar province under control. As of Tuesday last week, there were 772 sick hogs and 84 deaths and as of now DA said no incidence of morbidity was noted in the town.

Meanwhile, suspected hemorrhagic septicemia or “hemosep” in carabaos was also reported in Calbiga town in Samar but DA said it still has to get the formal report from the town officials including the number of affected animals.


 

[mikey]

Philippines: CSF hits North Cotabato 10 Feb 2009
A suspected Classical Swine Fever (CSF) outbreak in three North Cotabato towns on the Philippines has resulted in the deaths of 240 pigs since last week, Businessworld reports.
Dr Enrico P. Garzon, chief provincial veterinarian, has advised owners of affected hogs to bury them as consuming infected meat may be dangerous to human health. CSF is also known as hog cholera.


"The suspected hog cholera outbreak hit the towns of Alamada, Aleosan and Midsayap," Garzon said.


Verification
Dr John B. Pascual, Department of Agriculture (DA) livestock division chief, said news of the hog cholera outbreak has reached their office here and that they will verify the report.


"We will get tissue samples and have them tested in our laboratory. We will resort to quarantining pigs [in] North Cotabato if we confirm that there is indeed a hog cholera outbreak in the area," he said.


Scheduled programme
North Cotabato vice-governor Emmanuel F. Piñol was concerned on the outbreak’s impact to a scheduled programme launch to increase the income of backyard swine growers. He confirmed that hogs have been dying but 'they are in remote areas' of the province and that the case 'was not alarming'.


The island of Mindanao has been certified FMD-free by the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) or World Organization for Animal Health.

[nemo]

Hope so this is hog cholera and not PRRS.

[mikey]

Friday, February 13, 2009Print This Page
Pork and Chicken Prices Go Up
THE PHILIPPINES - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the Ebola Reston virus scare has finally taken its toll on the prices of chicken and pork sold in public markets, a television report said today.



A GMA Flash Report said the the DTI noted that current prices of chicken had gone up by P10 per kilogram from P110 to P120.

Meanwhile, the DTI said that pork prices also spiked by as much as P30 a kilo from the previous P140 to P150 to the current P180.

Trade Undersecretary Zenaida Maglaya said the price adjustments were triggered by consumers shifting from eating pork to chicken.

Mr Maglaya attributed this shift to the fear sowed by the recent discovery of a number of hog farm workers from Bulacan and Pampanga being previously exposed to the virus.

The Department of Health (DoH) said that while the cases show that the virus could have been transferred from pig to human, it assured that the hog farmers are in healthy condition.

Aside from the virus scare, Mr Maglaya said that the “tight" supply of chicken feed in the market had also contributed to the price increase.

But meat was not the only basic commodity that became more expensive, according to the DTI, as rice prices have likewise gone up by an average of P2 per kilogram.

[mikey]

Hog cholera kills 240 pigs in North Cotabato
[16 February 2009] Roughly 240 pigs have died of hog cholera in North Cotabato province in a Mindanao since late January following flashfloods that submerged several areas in the province. A report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer cited North Cotabato Governor Jesus Sacdalan as saying that the disease was detected in towns of Alamada, Aleosan and Midsayap, and that “a massive anti-cholera immunization drive had been immediately launched to save the remaining hogs from being afflicted with the disease.”

[mikey]

MARK MERUEÑAS, GMANews.TV
02/23/2009 | 05:12 PM

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Agriculture Sec. Arthur Yap, inspecting pork at a public market in this file photo, orders the 'depopulation of some 6,000 pigs due to the Ebola Reston virus scare. Charlie MagnoMANILA, Philippines - The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Monday ordered the depopulation of 6,000 pigs in a Bulacan farm in northern Philippines believed to have been affected by the Ebola Reston virus.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said the pigs were from a farm in the town of Pandi and would be killed to prevent the spread of the virus.

"In Pandi, Bulacan, there are traces and evidence of an on-going viral transmission. And for that reason we are ordering the depopulation of the herd," Yap said in a joint-press conference of the DA and the Department of Health (DOH) in Quezon City.

During the depopulation, the pigs would be restricted from going out of the farm before they would be incapacitated, burned, then buried within the premises.

The government said it would observe a “humane killing" of the pigs and prevent human exposure during the process. International observers are also expected to participate in the depopulation.

The Philippine government, through the help of Regional Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) and the United States Centers for Disease Control (US-CDC), tested 160 pig blood samples: 133 of which came from the Bulacan farm and 27 from the Pangasinan farm.

Of the 133 blood samples from Bulacan, 19 tested positive for ERV. Meanwhile, none of 27 samples from Pangasinan were affected. The results prompted the government to order the depopulation of the pigs from the Bulacan pig farm and lifted the quarantine in the Pangasinan farm.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III quelled fears that humans could be afflicted with the virus, saying that the Ebola Reston virus "remains a low risk to human health at this time." Duque added that ERV remains the only strain not to cause significant illness to humans.

Despite the slaughtering of 6,000 pigs, the government agencies assured that it would not have any adverse effects to the stock supply in the country as the number would only account for less than one percent of the total 15-million pig stock in the Philippines.

Yap also assured that there were no "abnormal deaths" in the farms but that they were just depopulating as a "precautionary measure" to make sure the virus would not spread out further.

A health scare erupted in December last year when the DA and the DOH announced that at least one hog farmer in Central Luzon was found to have been infected.

But only several traces of the virus were left in the victim’s body, an indication that his body was able to fight off the virus.

The following month, the government announced four additional cases of hog farmers contracting the virus. All farmers, the DA assured, are in good health condition.

Monday’s announcement came days after the agency barred the importation of cattle from China and poultry from Belgium, following confirmed cases of foot-and-mouth disease and the avian flu. - GMANews.TV

[mikey]

Monday, February 23, 2009Print This Page
Livestock, Meat Industries Exported P3.3B in 2008
PHILIPPINES - Livestock and meat to the value of 3.3 billion pesos were exported last year.



Sun Star reports officials saying that 3.3 billion worth of livestock and assorted frozen meat products worth 3.3 billion pesos (PHP) were shipped from General Santos City to other parts of the country last year.

In his annual state of the city address, Mayor Pedro Acharon pointed out the city sent out PHP 1.4 billion worth of livestock and PHP 1.9 billion worth of assorted frozen meat products.

"Our [livestock] and meat products still hold a significant market share in the local and foreign trading," he said.

For live animals, there were 199,659 swine shipped out in 2008 with a value of PHP 1.1 billion; 6,765 head of cattle for PHP 175.9 million and 4,907 heads of carabaos for PHP 98.1 million, the city mayor said.

For frozen meat products, pork reached 13,000 tonnes with a value of PHP 1.4 billion; beef generated PHP 385.7 million with a volume of 962.6 tonnes, and poultry (chicken) products was valued at PHP 99.3 million at a volume of 1,100 tonnes, the mayor said.

The city has 37 piggeries, 46 poultry farms, two poultry dressing plants and one private abattoir.

Widely known as the 'Tuna Capital of the Philippines', General Santos City also has several swine farms accredited to export cut pork meat products to Singapore.

However, the maiden shipment was aborted in December following the confirmation of the Ebola Reston virus in some provinces in Luzon.

Dr Antonio Ephraim Marin, city veterinarian, said General Santos was the second largest swine producer last year in the country, next only to Bulacan, reports Sun Star.