Ex-OFW who spent life savings on itik farm rues potential losses

Like any other OFW, Ryan Lacanilao spent 10 years overseas to give his family a good life. In his case, his hard work resulted in a manageable duck farm that he could have passed on to his children.

With the outbreak of avian influenza in Pampanga, however, Lacanilao is unsure if the product of his years in South Korea — and his P2 million investment — will ever come back.

"Sumugal lang kami sa ano kasi nga ayoko na din bumalik ng ibang bansa, ng South Korea, ayoko na ring bumalik kaya nag-try akong mag-invest dito sa duck raising," Lacanilao said in a report by Cedric Castillo on 24 Oras on Tuesday.

"Ayun, tapos ganito pa yung nangyari, kaya mahirap."

Lacanilao's farm sits within the one kilometer quarantine area the Department of Agriculture (DA) established to contain the outbreak of avian influenza Type A subtype H5 that began in a quail and duck farm.

An estimated 200,000 birds, regardless of domestication, will be culled and buried as per the Department of Health's (DOH) quarantine measures. Some 50,000 birds have been culled as of Saturday.

The DA has allocated P16 million to compensate farmers P80 per fowl killed during the culling.

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said the government cannot compensate farmers for birds killed before the culling operations began as their numbers could not be validated.

"Ang ilalaan namin ay P16 million para mabayaran lang lahat nung pinatay na alaga. Ang babayaran lang ng gobyerno ay yung pinatay during the operation. Yung namatay previously ay hindi po natin na-validate eh. Hindi natin mabibilang," Piñol said.

No animal-to-human transmissions have been recorded as of Tuesday but two farmers with flu-like symptoms are being monitored as suspect cases and were taken into quarantine.

Persons who had direct contact with birds must undergo a 10-day quarantine period.

The DA will monitor a seven kilometer controlled area outside the one kilometer radius for possible instances of the flu.

Poultry farms can operate normally once again after a 90-day quarantine period that will be implemented if no additional cases are detected during the initial quarantine period.

Because of this, poultry owner Alex Panlilo said farmers within the seven kilometer area may volunteer their flock for culling due to the losses they will incur while waiting for quarantine to end. —Rie Takumi/JST, GMA News