DA to boost fight against ASF via mobile lab units
THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it will establish 6 mobile laboratory units (MLU) to boost the government’s fight against the dreaded African swine fever (ASF) by improving its capacity to detect outbreaks.
Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar has approved the implementation of the P100-million program that seeks to establish 6 MLUS in Asf-affected regions within the first quarter.
“Each MLU can provide services to any local government unit [LGU], where there is ASF incidence and other animal diseases. It may also serve as a mobile veterinary school to train LGU personnel in disease detection, prevention and monitoring,” the DA said in a statement.
Dar said the rollout of the MLUS is part of the government’s measures to “revive the country’s hog industry and maintain a healthy animal sector.”
“Aside from the MLUS, the Bureau of Animal Industry [BAI] in partnership with DA Regional Field Offices [RFOS] manages Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (RADDL) that is capable of testing and determining animal diseases through RT-PCR,” the DA added.
BAI Director Reildrin Morales said the 6 MLUS “just need to optimize processes to further strengthen the country’s animal diagnostic infrastructure.”
“Under the DA’S Quick Response Fund (QRF), we have procured and distributed P100 million worth of RT-PCR test kits to LGUS nationwide,” Morales added.
In a related development, the DA said it continues to partner with the private sector to improve the country’ s efforts against ASF and other transboundary animal diseases or TADS.
The DA said Dar and other top agriculture officials met with a group of veterinarians and scientists from Bioassets Diagnostic Clinic “to discuss approaches” aimed at eradicating ASF and other TADS.
“During the meeting, Bioassets presented the ‘Brisk Response through In-location Diagnostics and Genome Sequencing’ [BRIDGES] Project—a three-part comprehensive unified approach, which can isolate and characterize the ASF virus at a molecular level,” it said.
“BRIDGES may also be used to differentiate field strain from vaccine strain, which may fasttrack vaccine research development.”
The P39.2-million project is jointly funded by Bioassets and the Department of Science and Technology under the Science for Change Program.
“During the discussion, the agri chief also offered that the precision diagnostics component of the project be conducted in existing government facilities such as the Crop Biotechnology Center, at Philrice compound, in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija,” the DA said.
“The DA-BAI and Bioassets agreed to organize a unified approach to jointly manage, control, and contain ASF and other transboundary animal diseases in partnership with LGUS, hog farmers’ groups, and other industry stakeholders.”
The agencies will also collaborate to enhance ASF biosecurity measures, provision of onsite detection tools, preventive diagnostics, establish required facilities, and capacitate personnel.