The Department of Agriculture (DA) has declared Cagayan province free from the highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI), following several months of intensive monitoring and disease control operations. In a memorandum, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. confirmed that Cagayan is no longer under threat from the H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus, which was first detected in gamefowl in the town of Solana in January 2023.
According to the DA, the province has passed the critical 90-day period since the completion of cleaning and disinfection operations, and extensive surveillance efforts have yielded negative results in AI testing. These efforts included blood collection and testing from both domestic and wild bird populations, which are part of Cagayan’s natural bird migration route.
“Our goal is to ensure the country has enough supply of food that is not only affordable but safe for public consumption,” Secretary Tiu Laurel said. “It is also our duty to protect the local poultry industry, which creates millions of jobs and generates billions in investments.”
The province, which accounts for nearly 10 percent of the nation’s poultry production, had previously remained free of bird flu thanks to stringent biosecurity measures and disease control protocols. However, after the virus was discovered in early 2023, the DA placed the entire region under close surveillance to prevent the spread of the disease.
Cagayan Valley, which includes the provinces of Batanes, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, and Quirino, continues to be a key poultry-producing area in the Philippines. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the region contributed significantly to national poultry production in the second quarter of 2024.
The successful containment of the bird flu outbreak in Cagayan marks a significant victory for both the local poultry industry and public health efforts, ensuring that the province can continue to meet both domestic and international demand for poultry products.
