DA to release ASF zoning plan

The Department of Agriculture will soon release an African Swine Fever zoning plan as an added measure to stop the spread of the hog disease.

“The whole of Visayas and Mindanao, plus the island provinces of MIMAROPA [and] Masbate will be declared free zones,” Dr. Reildrin Morales, director of the Task Force on Swine Diseases, said in a press conference on Monday.

These areas have not had a single case of ASF to date.

“Ito pong Luzon, dahil andirito 'yung cases natin ng ASF, this will be the containment zone. Yung mainland Luzon,” Morales said.

He added that within the Luzon containment zone there will be "protected zones," "surveillance zones," and "infected zones."

The protected zones are the Cordillera Region and Regions 1, 2, and 5.

The surveillance zones have a high risk of ASF.

“We’re looking at Regions 3 and 4A dahil ito po 'yung mataas ang risk na magkaroon ng insidente ng sakit dahil nandirito po yung pinakamaraming baboy sa Luzon. These are considered surveillance zones,” Morales explained.

Places that have cases of ASF will be included in the infected zone.

Morales identified Bulacan and Pampanga as infected zones.

The free zones are the "clean" zones, Morales added.

“So 'yung impact noon sa trade, of course, the clean zones can send their pigs, their meat and their products anywhere in the country,” he said.

“Infected zones can trade only with their fellow infected zone and of course, NCR,” he added.

When asked if there are new cases of ASF in the country, Bureau of Animal Industry Director Ronnie Domingo said they received reports of mortalities in several areas in Luzon.

“Kino-confirm pa po natin kung ito po ay related sa ASF,” Domingo said.

Agriculture Secretary William Dar clarified that the reported mortalities are “within the infected zones.” — BM, GMA News