CEBU CITY, Philippines—An official of the Carcar City government said that lechon and chicharon sales in the city have slowed down since the announcement of a confirmed case of African Swine Fever (ASF) in their locality.
Carcar City Administrator and lawyer Jose Marie Poblete, in a news forum on Tuesday, March 14, 2023, said the sales of these product that are known in Carcar has been affected because of the ASF scare.
“To be honest about it, naapektahan g’yod because of the scare ba. Naay scare. Naa ang supply…kay di man massive, limited ra man sa three barangays ang na identified (with ASF cases), pero ang consumption, mura’g ning gamay-gamay g’yod kay labi na sa people from outside Carcar, nahadlok sila,” he said.
“Ang Carcaranon, naa pa may mamalit, but ang ato man gung market is whole province unta. So, niadmit ta nga medyo apektado ang consumption so apektado sad ang ilang sales,” he added.
Authorities from Cebu Province confirmed last March 1 that they found ASF virus in samples of slaughtered pigs in Carcar City.
But the Department of Health in the region (DOH-7) issued a health advisory, assuring the public that ASF does not pose a threat to human health.
“The World Organization for Animal Health describes ASF as a severe and highly contagious viral disease among domestic and wild pigs only,” portions of the advisory reads.
“Consumption of pork and processed meat remains to be safe as long as these are brought from reliable outlets and are cooked properly before eating,” it added.
READ: ASF in Cebu: Is it safe to eat pork here? Yes, officials say
READ: Pork producers group in CV tells public: Local pork is safe to eat
Poblete, meanwhile, welcomed the order of Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia to temporarily stop the culling of pigs in the city.
Moreover, Poblete said that as the province is still formulating its own policies and protocols in managing the disease, Carcar City government will continue implementing its biosecurity and control measures.
“Dili alien ang ASF concept pero karon pa nahitabo and we are actually at a loss at actual field dealing gani sa site. For that matter, we are just relying on issuance from the national government and the province and local ordinances nga maoy atong basehan in dealing with ASF,” he said.
“But we noted nga ang maong mga balaod, only deals with the prevention, the control of the virus, walay aspeto sa side sa mga hog raisers gani nga pag abot diay nimo didto, there is always that resistance because livelihood baya na,” he added.
/bmjo
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