VG Ferrer: Only Bureau of Animal Industry can declare ASF in Bago

May 29, 2023

There is no African swine fever (ASF) in hogs in Bago City, unless declared by the Bureau of Animal Industry, Negros Occidental Vice Governor Jeffrey Ferrer said yesterday.

Ferrer made the statement following reports that the two hogs that tested positive for ASF virus in Barangay Taculing, Bacolod City, came from Bago City.

If ASF is detected in those areas, blood samples taken from swine in Bago City should be tested before an announcement from BAI, the vice governor said. (https://shorturl.ac/7a95r)

Bago City ranked second in terms of the number of hog fatalities, reports from the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) said.

PVO said hog cholera and other diseases have killed more than 6,379 hogs in 14 local government units of Negros Occidental, as of May 26.

As to the declaration of state of calamity, Ferrer said “we need to know the correct data, to guide our decision,” stressing that, as of Sunday, there are still negative test results for ASF.

The damage to Negros Occidental’s P6 billion hog industry, considered one of the largest in the country, has so far been estimated at P75.5 million, according to PVO reports.