|
SMALL
poultry raisers on Tuesday expressed their concern over
the possibility that they may incur losses with the news
that the dead heron that migrated to Sorsogon from
Japan
may be infected with the dreaded avian influenza (AI)
virus.
The
United Broiler Raisers’ Association (UBRA) said reports
that the death of the heron may be due to bird flu could
further discourage more people from buying chicken.
“Demand
has been very weak since December and it has yet to pick
up. Sales remain slow even as the election period has
already started,” said UBRA president Gregorio San Diego
Jr.
“With
reports that the death of the heron may be due to bird
flu, demand may decline further,” said
San Diego.
The
first state-of-the-art Avian Influenza (AI) Diagnostic
Laboratory outside Metro Manila was inaugurated Tuesday
at the regulatory compound of the Agriculture department
office in
San Fernando,
Pampanga.
The
diagnostic laboratory, worth more than P6 million, came
from a grant from the government of New Zealand through
its International Aid and Development Agency (NZAID),
while a P5 million counterpart fund came from the
regional agriculture office.
The
regional AI diagnostic laboratory has the capacity to
conduct antigen tests, serological tests, agar gel
immunodiffusion test, hemmaglutination inhibition test,
virus isolation, and the more sensitive polymerase chain
reaction for molecular diagnosis.
UBRA had
earlier said consumers’ demand for poultry meat declined
by at least 20 percent during the holidays, causing an
excess in supply in the domestic market.
Due to
weak demand,
San Diego disclosed that the live weight price of chicken plunged
further to P56 to P59 a kilogram, from a high of P70 per
kilo in January.
“We’re
not only seeing this phenomenon in dressed chicken. Even
egg consumption has gone down in recent months,” he
said.
San Diego
suspects that the low demand for poultry products may be
due largely to the weakening purchasing power of
ordinary Filipinos.
Government agencies led by the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) have been on alert
following the discovery of a dead heron in barangay
Cogon in Sorsogon.
DENR
Secretary Angelo Reyes called an emergency meeting on
Tuesday to strengthen monitoring activities of migratory
birds in the municipality and nearby wet land areas.
The
Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), an attached agency of
the Department of Agriculture (DA), for its part said
the bird may have died of other causes aside from bird
flu.
San Diego,
for his part, said the government should be more
vigilant against smuggling of farm goods since this has
the potential to allow the entry of animal diseases such
as AI.
Currently, the
Philippines
remains free from the dreaded disease which have
resurfaced in neighboring Asian countries such as
Vietnam and Thailand.
The
World Bank has earlier estimated that economic losses in
Southeast Asia are estimated at around $10 billion since
the virus plagued poultry farms in the region. (With P.
Agatep) |
