DA declares Cagayan free of bird flu

MANILA, Philippines — Cagayan is the latest province to be declared by the Department of Agriculture (DA) as bird flu-free after laboratory tests confirmed no new cases of the avian disease more than 90 days after the cleaning and disinfection of affected poultry farms.

“Continued disease monitoring and surveillance in the 1-[kilometer] and 7-km surveillance zones surrounding the affected farms yielded negative test results for influenza type A virus,” according to Memorandum Circular No. 46 signed by Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. on Nov. 4.

READ: Lab test shows no bird flu case in Tarlac

Other provinces that have fully recovered from the disease include Camarines Sur, Davao del Sur, Rizal, South Cotabato, Ilocos Sur, Batangas, Capiz, Quezon, Aurora, Ilocos Norte, Pangasinan, Cotabato, Isabela, Maguindanao del Sur, Sultan Kudarat, Bulacan and Leyte.

The country is still battling avian influenza in some areas, with the latest Bureau of Animal Industry tally showing ongoing cases in Tarlac and Pampanga as of Oct. 25. — Jordeene B. Lagare