Duterte vows to assist poultry farmers affected by avian flu

August 28, 2017

President Rodrigo Duterte vowed on Monday to provide more assistance to the poultry raisers in Pampanga province affected by bird flu outbreak.

To show poultry products from Pampanga and Nueva Ecija were safe for consumption, Duterte, along with some local government officials, including former president and Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, partook of balut, chicken barbecue and fried duck in a boodle fight.

"To help the industry recover, the government, through the Department of Agriculture, will assist in the affected poultry raisers in Pampanga and Nueva Ecija to defray their losses through interventions such as loans and capacity building trainings," Duterte said in a speech.

He said additional funds could be sourced from the state-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol who accompanied Duterte in Pampanga said the president released an initial amount of P29 million to poultry farmers of San Luis, Pampanga where the bird flu outbreak was first reported early this month, and towns of Jaen and San Isidro in Nueva Ecija where similar outbreak took place.

The 29 million is part of the P43.31 million which the DA will release to all farmers in the area whose fowls were killed, he said.

"We ask the full cooperation and assistance, not only of the poultry industry, but also of the general public to make sure that disease outbreaks such as this are reported to authorities at the onset of its occurrence," Duterte said.

"Our goal is clear and simple: Put the industry firmly back into the path of high growth and progress so that it can continue to contribute to our nation’s food security and to our economic growth," he added.

Authorities culled 603,000 chickens, ducks and gamefowls in Pampanga and Nueva Ecija and 115,000 quails in Nueva Ecija. Celerina Monte/DMS