The Department of Agriculture (DA) has temporarily suspended imports of poultry and related products from the Netherlands following a fresh outbreak of bird flu.

The agency said Friday the ban covers poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs, and even semen used for artificial insemination of breeders. 

The suspension, although it may affect market supply, will protect domestic poultry populations and prevent the entry of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said Dutch veterinary authorities reported to the World Organization for Animal Health on 8 October an outbreak of H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in Aa en Hunze, Drenthe, on 6 October , which infected domestic birds.

“Acting on the recommendation of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), I have ordered the import freeze to safeguard our poultry sector. The poultry industry is vital to food security and a key source of investments and employment,” Tiu Laurel said.

He also directed the BAI to suspend the processing and issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances for poultry commodities from the Netherlands.

Under Memorandum Order No. 68, shipments from the Netherlands already in transit, loaded, or accepted at ports before the order took effect may still enter, provided the products were slaughtered or produced on or before 22 September. 

Except for heat-treated products, all covered shipments arriving after the ban will be confiscated by veterinary quarantine officers at ports of entry.

The DA previously halted poultry imports from the Netherlands in December last year due to a bird flu outbreak, lifting the ban only in May.