Virus-hit Bulacan hog farm back in operation

MALOLOS CITY, Philippines – A hog farm in Pandi town where over 6,000 pigs were culled in March last year due to a low pathogenic ebola reston virus is back in operation.

However, its current hog population is barely a fraction of what it used to have before the weeklong depopulation last year.

“They restarted their operation early this year,” said Dr. Voltaire Basinang, acting provincial veterinarian.

Dr. Rodante Parulan, municipal health officer of Pandi town, confirmed this, saying the virus seemed to have been eradicated. 

Citing protocols set by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and the Department of Health (DOH), Basinang said it took the owners of Win farm more than six months to resume their operations after all their hogs were culled.

“The BAI and DOH required (the farm owners) to suspend operations for at least six months after the culling, and they extended it by starting their operation early this year,” Basinang said.