Camarines Sur declared bird flu-free

MANILA, Philippines — Camarines Sur has been declared free from avian influenza, five months after the province’s last recorded case, according to the Department of Agriculture.

The DA yesterday said the province’s last outbreak involved the highly pathogenic H5N9 bird flu virus, which prompted a comprehensive response from local and national authorities to contain the disease.

“The declaration, issued through Memorandum Circular 27 signed on Wednesday, follows a comprehensive disease control and surveillance campaign,” the DA said in a statement. “The last confirmed case was detected in April 2025 at a backyard duck farm in the municipality of Camaligan.”

The declaration followed the guidelines set by the World Organization for Animal Health, which allows an area to regain its bird flu-free status 28 days after a successful stamping-out operation, disinfection and absence of new cases, the DA said.

Monitoring within one-kilometer and seven-kilometer zones around the infected area showed no positive cases of the influenza A virus.

Prior to the H5N9 incident, Camarines Sur reported cases of H5N1 in 2022.

The province’s bird flu-free status is expected to restore confidence among poultry farmers, traders and consumers in Camarines Sur.

Last month, the Food and Drug Administration approved the commercial use of a new vaccine to protect the poultry industry against the highly pathogenic H5N1 and velogenic Newcastle disease.