President Ferdinand R. Marcos on Sunday ordered the Department of Agriculture’s Western Visayas office to test all pig breeding sites in the region to control the spread of the African Swine Fever (ASF).

The directive came after the DA – Western Visayas regional office reported during a situation briefing in Bacolod City that cases of ASF had been reported in the area, particularly in Iloilo.

Marcos said all measures to prevent its spread is already in place, including banning pork products from infested areas.

He said testing all breeding farms for ASF is one of the most effective ways of controlling the spread of infection.

The Chief Executive also noted that one of the challenges in fighting the infection is that ASF has been reported to spread through mosquitos.

Iloilo and the whole Western Visayas region had previously been among the last few areas in the country that had remained ASF-free since the first reported outbreak in July 2019. | PND