Chicken prices drop, supply cut amid bird flu outbreak
129Tuesday,VOL.XXXVII,NO.ugust
Member stores of the Philippine Amalgamated S u p e r m a r k e t s Association ( PAGASA) have cut their chicken supply by up to 40 percent, the group said.
To ensure t hat t he chickens they sell are flu- free, stores are seeking e s t a b l i s h e d b r a n d s with f o wl t h a t h a ve gone t hrough rigorous inspection.
M e a n w h i l e , w e t market sellers such as those in the Balintawak market reported a decline in sales by as much as 50 percent, as buyers are shying away from chicken due to the bird flu scare, despite assurances that their supplies come from poultry farms outside of Pampanga.
The price of chicken in the Balintawak market has gone down to P120 per kilo, f rom around P140 t o P150 prior t o t he reported bird f l u outbreak.
The Philippines on Friday confirmed its first bird flu outbreak after 37,000 fowls died in six poultry farms in San Luis town, Pampanga.
On Saturday, authorities began to cull an estimated 200,000 f owls i n t he affected area to prevent the spread of the Avian Influenza Type A Subtype H5, which hit San Luis.
Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda has declared a state of calamity in the province. Authorities also implemented a quarantine area within a 1- km radius in San Luis town, and a controlled 7- km radius area.
On Saturday, police set up checkpoints in the affected town.
The Department of Health has assured the public that no bird- to- human transmission has been reported following the outbreak.
Officials have al s o clarified that eating cooked chicken meat or eggs would not lead to contracting the infection as transmission may only happen through direct contact with afflicted fowl. (