BOC-NAIA torches pest-infested fruits

The Bureau of Customs at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (BOC-NAIA) torched some 500 kilos of pest-infested lanzones from Thailand yesterday.

BOC-NAIA District Collector Ricardo Belmonte said that the pest-infested lanzones were detected by Customs examiners at the NAIA Terminal I arrival area last Thursday.

The fruits were placed inside 15 styropor boxes brought in by a Filipina passenger Bangkok. She arrived via Kuwaiti Airways Flight KU 411, which landed at the NAIA at around 6 p.m.

Customs examiners had the fruits seized after finding bark borer worms inside during inspection. The fruits were then placed in quarantine.

"We are on alert against the entry of pest-infested fruits into the country because we don’t want them entering our ports," Belmonte said.

BOC-NAIA officers noted that the passenger who brought in the fruits was able to present a "phyto-sanitary" permit from Bangkok.

Carmelita Manahan-Talusan, BOC-NAIA collector, said the detection of the pest-infested lanzones shows the need for heightened vigilance of Customs against fruits from other countries.

"We urge passengers. particularly our fellow Filipinos. not to bring with them fruits or seeds from other countries because these might bear pests that can get into our soil and infect our fruit trees," Talusan said.