Agri chief to resign if bird flu spreads to VisMin

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol on Monday said he will resign if the avian influenza outbreak spreads to the Visayas and Mindanao regions.

"'Pag kumalat ito sa Visayas at sa Mindanao, dahil sa kapabayaan ko, mag-re-resign ako," he said in a briefing in Quezon City.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday reported an outbreak of the avian influenza type A subtype H5 in a poultry farm in Barangay San Agustin in San Luis, Pampanga.

The outbreak was first detected in a quail farm in Barangay San Agustin, before it spread to nearby farms.

The Bureau of Animal Industry has since ordered a 1-kilomer quarantine radius and a 7-km control area, including the culling of all quails, ducks and chickens in farms with the quarantine zone.

Piñol also ordered a ban on transporting poultry and poultry products beyond Luzon. — VDS, GMA News