Nueva Ecija town mulls state of calamity to curb bird flu

JAEN, Nueva Ecija –– The municipal government is studying whether it should place the town under a state of calamity to contain the spread of avian influenza that now threatens local quail, chicken, and duck farms.

Mayor Sylvia Austria said the municipal council and members of the municipal disaster risk reduction and management council support every step being undertaken to curb bird flu, which led to the culling of 15,000 quails in Barangay Ulaning Pitak last week.

Checkpoints put up to regulate the entry of travelers as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have also served as a quarantine procedure against bird flu.

Austria said 20 of 27 villages here have quail farms, which raise a million layer birds. Most of the quail farmers are new to the industry.

The new players ventured into quail farming after their pigs died due to the African Swine Fever, said Councilor Sylvester Austria./lzb