The Philippine government on January 20 issued a temporary ban on the importation poultry meat, live birds, day-old chicks and eggs from China. The ban was put in place over concerns of high pathogenic avian influenza in China, which have been confirmed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
The avian influenza virus was earlier detected in the villages of Zhungzhuang, Jiaozhuang and Baoding in Heibei, Philippine Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said in a statement. Alcala ordered the ban on Chinese poultry and eggs following the recent report of Director General Dr. Zhang Zhongqui of the China Animal Disease Control Center about the outbreak, according to reports.
In line with the ban, Alcala ordered the immediate suspension of the processing, evaluation, and issuance of applications, as well as the confiscation of shipments of eggs and poultry, with the exception on heat-treated products, from China into the Philippines.
