By Gabriela Baron
President Ferdinand R. Marcos on Sunday, Oct. 23, ordered the Department of Agriculture (DA) Western Visayas to test all pig breeding sites in the region to curb the spread of the African Swine Fever (ASF).
This after the DA-Western Visayas regional office reported during a situation briefing in Bacolod City that cases of ASF had been reported in the area, particularly in Iloilo.
The President assured that all measures to prevent its spread are already in place, including banning pork products from infested areas.
He cited that testing all breeding farms for ASF is ‘one of the most effective ways’ of controlling the spread of infection.
The Chief Executive also noted that one of the challenges in fighting the infection is that ASF has been reported to spread through mosquitoes.
Iloilo and the whole Western Visayas region had previously been among the last few areas in the country that had remained ASF-free since the first reported outbreak in July 2019.
