MANILA: The Department of Agriculture (DA) has assured consumers that there will be no increase in the prices of eggs and chicken during the holiday season, despite the detection of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N2 at a duck farm in Camarines Norte. This announcement follows confirmation of the active case by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), marking it as the second area with active avian influenza cases, after Pandi, Bulacan.

According to Philippines News Agency, DA Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa stated in a Zoom interview that the presence of the avian influenza case in Talisay, Camarines Norte, will not affect market prices. Current prices for whole chicken range from PHP175 to PHP240 per kilogram, while egg prices vary from PHP7 to PHP9.60 per piece, depending on the size.

De Mesa revealed that the BAI is investigating the source of the H5N2 strain, which has been recorded in the country for the first time. He noted that the H5N1 strain is generally more virulent and transmissible th
an the recently detected H5N2 strain. Despite this, the DA and BAI remain committed to rigorously managing transboundary diseases to safeguard the livestock and poultry sectors.

In response to avian influenza concerns, the DA has enacted a temporary import ban on domestic and wild birds, along with poultry products from the Netherlands. This decision follows a report from the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality of the Netherlands, detailing an additional AI outbreak in Putten, Gelderland, on November 17. The ban halts the issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances for such imports, with exceptions made for products already in transit or slaughtered poultry produced on or before November 3.