DA bans poultry products from Austria, Japan due to bird flu

INQUIRER FILES

The Department of Agriculture (DA) temporarily banned the entry of imported poultry sourced from Austria and Japan as they recorded bird flu cases.

Separately, the DA lifted the moratorium on sourcing poultry goods from Denmark as the European country is now free of avian influenza.

In separate memorandum orders, the DA said the temporary ban applies to the importation of domestic and wild birds and their products, including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen originating from Austria and Japan.

READ: DA lifts import ban on poultry products from California, South Dakota

The DA immediately suspended the processing of applications and issuances of import clearances to these commodities.

Its veterinary quarantine officers or inspectors will stop and confiscate deliveries of the above-stated commodities into the country at all major ports of entry.

Shipments from Japan that are in transit, loaded or accepted unto port before informing authorities of these bans are exempted, as long as the products were slaughtered or produced on or before Oct. 2.

The DA barred the entry of poultry imports from Austria and Japan after reporting an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Atsuma, Hokkaido in Japan in October and affecting domestic Birds.

The same animal disease also hit Mattighofen, Braunau am Inn, Oberösterreich in Austria last month affecting domestic birds.
“There is a need to prevent the entry of HPAI virus to protect the health of the local poultry population,” the issuances read.

Meanwhile, the agency has allowed again the importation of poultry from Denmark nearly two years after imposing the ban as the risk of contamination from these commodities “is negligible.”

“All import transactions of the above commodities shall be in accordance with existing rules and regulations of the [DA],” it added.

Austria, Denmark and Japan are among the country’s major suppliers of imported meat.

In a separate statement on Wednesday, the DA said it is thoroughly assessing its existing rules to ease the shipment of chicken and hogs to address supply woes exacerbated by lingering animal health issues in time for the holidays.

The DA is consulting industry groups, specifically the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc., in carrying out a comprehensive review of regulations governing the transport of livestock products.

In a statement on Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the extensive review “aims to ease supply bottlenecks for chicken and pork without compromising food safety.”

“It will also help manage expected demand spikes during the holiday season,” Tiu Laurel said.

One of the rules up for assessment is Administrative Order No. 5 issued in 2019 is one of the rules covering the delivery of animals, animal products and by-products across the country. It outlines special requirements and imposes strict timelines for obtaining transport permits to transport certain animals and products.

Another is Administrative Circular No. 2 promulgated in 2022, which modified the National Zoning and Movement Plan to curb the spread of African swine fever.

“We aim to streamline these processes and update safety measures to ensure stable supply and reasonable prices for pork, poultry, and other products, while safeguarding both public health and the livestock industry,” the DA chief added.