The town of Sagada, Mountain Province has banned the transport and sale of pigs coming from its three barangays, following the detection of the virus that causes the African swine fever in the areas.
In Executive Order 11-2022, Mayor James Pooten declared a temporary ban on the transport and sale of live pigs and pork products from barangays Dagdag, Patay, and Demang after samples taken from hogs showed the presence and “possible outbreak” of ASF in the villages.
“To protect the livestock industry, there is a need to control and eradicate communicable diseases affecting livestock in the municipality,” Pooten stated in the EO posted in the town’s Facebook account.
The mayor ordered the Municipal African Swine Fever Task Force and officials of the three barangays to coordinate and enforce quarantine control measures and food safety protocols relative to the presence of ASF in the municipality.
He said the ban will be lifted once the Department of Agriculture or the Provincial ASF Task Force issued a clearance that would ensure the safe consumption of swine products from the affected barangays and allowed the resumption of activities related to swine production in the areas.
The EO added the 1-7-10 ASF protocol remains the best standard practice in the management, containment, and control of the ASF, which has been adversely affecting the country’s swine industry.
The 1-7-10 protocol means that within one kilometer radius from the site of ASF infection, hogs are prohibited from entering or leaving the area and the site should bedepopulated. Within a seven-KM radius, hogs must be monitored and their movements will be restricted and within a 10-KM radius, reporting and monitoring of swine disease occurrence is mandatory.
Although not a major producer of pork, Sagada is known for the annual staging of Etag Festival, an event held since 2011 to popularize etag or salted, smoked meat, a staple not only on ordinary meals, but also in rituals, whether these are performed in the household or on a community level.
Etag used to be made for household consumption, but has become a commercial commodity through the years. – Jane B. Cadalig
April 27, 2024
