Bohol still ASF-free, PCG to

deploy sniffing dogs in ports

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, Feb 11 (PIA) – Bohol is still African Swine Fever-free (ASF).

And to keep it that way, the Provincial ASF executive committee is putting up watch dogs at ports, to sniff out small amounts of pork meat, raw or processed pork that could be brought in by passengers crossing from Leyte.

Provincial veterinarian Dr. Stella Marie Lapiz during a stakeholders’ online consultation this week bared the possibility that locally stranded individuals (LSI) from Leyte and Mindanao, as per tradition when travelling, could bring in cooked adobo, or anything pork based to consume during the trip, not knowing that such act would be illegal in Bohol.

The problem with this and with the pandemic is that port authorities and quarantine personnel would have no way to find out if an entering passenger LSI or APOR is carrying cooked or raw pork, unlike then when the authorities can get closer to the passengers.

To fill in and plug the possible gap where potential breach could happen, the Philippine Coast Guard in Bohol is putting up starting Monday February 15, a K9 sniffing dog at the port of Ubay and possibly Jagna, to screen passenger’s hand-carry items, Coast Guard sources said.

Moreover, the Department of Agriculture’s Veterinary and Quarantine Services officer in Bohol. Dr. Marielle Abisado has urged shippers for Bohol to simple deny meat shipments which do not have the necessary documents.

Shippers know that it will be screened in Bohol and it will either be shipped back to origin or disposed here, the official who oversees the cargo inspection at the city port said.

As early as 2019, Bohol Governor Arthur Yap, who used to be agriculture secretary, issued Executive Order No 7, 8 and 22 series of 2019, putting up a temporary ban on the entry of live hogs, pork meat related products whether war, cooked or processed, frozen boar semen from Luzon and Mindanao.

Such is to make sure the fatal hog disease is barred from crossing to Bohol and possibly ruining the multi billion peso industry in Bohol.

According to the Provincial Veterinarian, Bohol produces about 50,501 metric tons of pork meat, about 82% of these is contributed by about 50,000 hog growers and producers who are mostly backyard raisers.

During the recent ASF stakeholders’ online meeting February 8, 2021 which gathered small scale hog growers and their representatives, large scale farmers, animal feeds suppliers and distributors, agriculture officers, town veterinarians, veterinary quarantine services of the Department of Agriculture and Office of the Provincial Veterinarian staff, with the media representatives, Dr. Lapiz appraised Boholanos of the current situation and the impending threat of the swine disease in Bohol.

Even then, she aired what Governor Arthur Yap has been calling: tighten border security measures some more, keep bio security measures and further spread useful information to allow small hog growers to be aware of the consequences of unreported cases of suspected ASF.

This as the AFS has already hit 10 regions, 34 provinces and 332 municipalities in the country.

Few weeks ago, reports of the outbreak of the highly fatal hog disease in Abuyog Leyte sent the Bohol ASF Executive Committee into heightened alarm, considering that the affected province, the first province hit in the Visayas, is just one boat ride away.

The spread of the Leyte outbreak went on a northward direction, now affecting not just Abuyog but also Javier, MacArthur, Lapaz, Dulag, Tan-awan and Palo. (rahchiu/PIA-7/Bohol)

FIGHTING THE SPREAD OF ASF WITH DOGS. Bohol’s ASF Council now uses sniffing dogs to seek pork meat or processed pork meat in passenger’s hand carry items, considering that inspection personnel are barred from getting close for social distancing purposes. (PIABohol/PCG)

ADVISE TO SHIPPERS. Veterinary Quarantine Services Inspector Dr. Maria Eleonor Abisado has asked shippers to deny undocumented pork meat and processed products becuse they would be shipped back or disposed of at the pier so as to make sure no such vector for ASF makes it way to Bohol. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)