Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu cities intensify African Swine Fever border controls

CEBU, Philippines – Major cities of Metro Cebu have implemented city-wide bans on the movement of pork products as reports of African Swine Fever (ASF) cases threaten the swine industry in Carcar City. 

The Cebu City government has reactivated its 11 border control areas, said Harold Alcontin, head of the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CCDRRMO) in a press conference on Wednesday, March 8.

“We will prioritize the south area kay mao mana based on actual data sa previous nato nga operations, atong south area maoy grabe daghan lihok,” Alcontin said.

(We will prioritize the south area because based on actual data from our previous operations, our south area has the most movement)

Dr. Jessica Maribojoc, head of Cebu City’s Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries (DVMF), said the city has been conducting surveillance and will be reinforcing border control in Barangays Bulacao, Inayawan, Laray,and the South Road Properties.

On March 7, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan signed Executive Order No. 2023-017, implementing a ban on pork and pork products, and authorizing the City Veterinary Office, police, and Philippine Coast Guard to conduct inspections. 

The next day, Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes signed Executive Order No. 13 Series of 2023, also implementing a ban, inspections, and Information Education Campaigns (IEC) for backyard farmers and commercial farm owners.

The highly urbanized cities’ moves came after the Cebu Provincial Veterinary Office on March 5 confirmed the presence of ASF in a sample taken from a slaughterhouse in Carcar City.

The Cebu provincial government and multiple local government units have also set up border controls in ports and identified barangays that might be “ASF hotspots”

Enough stock

Maribojoc clarified that Cebu city still has enough pork supply for its residents to last a month.

“To our hog raisers, please let’s not simply allow [supply] to enter,” Maribojoc said in a mix of English and Cebuano.

Maribojoc said that the city has been conducting monthly surveillance and has set up border control prior to the confirmed ASF samples.

The DVMF head assured residents that the city alone has enough supply to last a month. @rapplerdotcom

— John Sitchon (@TheJohnSitchon) March 8, 2023

The DVMF posted on its Facebook page the official situationer of the ASF outbreak in the province of Cebu. 

The Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) in an advisory post on March 7 assured the public that the ASF virus does not pose a threat to human health..

“Consumption of pork and processed meat remains to be safe as long as these are brought from reliable outlets and are cooked properly before eating,” read their statement.

But there is no cure for ASF, which can spread fast among vulnerable swine population, and an outbreak can devastate local economies.

–Rappler.com