THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has ordered temporary bans on the importation of poultry products from Sweden and the Czech Republic following outbreaks of avian influenza or bird flu in both countries.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the import bans were necessary to prevent the spread of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), particularly the H5N1 subtype, and protect the local poultry population.

The ban on poultry products from the Czech Republic was issued on March 8 after the Ministry of Agriculture told the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) on January of an outbreak in the Usti nad Orlici district.

The following week, on March 11, the DA ordered the ban on poultry products from Sweden following a bird flu outbreak, also in January, in the town of Ystad.

The bans cover imports of domestic and wild birds and their products, including meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen.

The immediate suspension of the processing of applications and issuances of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) import clearances was also ordered.

Shipments from Sweden and the Czech Republic that were already in transit and were slaughtered or produced before Dec. 22, 2023, will still be allowed to enter the country. From January to November 2023, the country imported about 394.108 million kilograms of poultry products, with the majority being chicken meat, data from the Bureau of Animal Industry showed.

Chicken was the second-highest imported meat product during the period, next to pork, accounting for 35.25 percent of the country's total meat imports.

In 2022, the Philippines' total importation of poultry meat was 411.07 million kilos, valued at $468.45 million.