PH Bans Poultry Imports from Minnesota Due to Bird Flu Outbreak

The Philippine government has imposed a ban on the importation of poultry and poultry by-products from Minnesota, USA, following an outbreak of bird flu in the state. This decision, made by the Department of Agriculture (DA), aims to prevent the spread of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. announced the ban through Memorandum Order No. 29, which halts the entry of domestic and wild birds, including their products such as poultry meat, eggs, day-old chicks, and semen, from Minnesota. This follows confirmed HPAI H5N1 cases in three Minnesota counties as of June 12, 2024, reported by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

Under a 2016 agreement between the Philippines and the US, a statewide ban can be enforced if HPAI affects at least three counties. The USDA-APHIS has also reported these cases to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), highlighting the zoonotic potential of HPAI, which means it could be transmitted to humans.

Following this report, Secretary Tiu Laurel instructed the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to immediately stop processing and issuing Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearances (SPSIC) for the affected products. However, shipments already in transit, loaded, or accepted at the port before the ban will be allowed, provided they were produced 14 days prior to the first outbreak.

Non-compliant shipments may be returned to the origin or condemned. This latest ban follows the DA’s lifting of a previous Minnesota poultry import ban in March 2023, also due to avian influenza.

In 2023, the Philippines imported 166,356 metric tons of poultry products worth $175.8 million from the United States, making it the second-largest supplier of poultry meat to the country, accounting for 39% of overseas purchases.