The Philippines has banned the importation of live animals from Israel, Palestine, and other countries in the Middle East and other parts of Asia following confirmed cases of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).

The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it is implementing the temporary ban following the detection of FMD virus serotype SAT1, which was confirmed through laboratory diagnosis.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported on April 15 that the virus was detected in Israel, Palestine, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Cyprus, Iraq, and Kuwait.

The DA, through Department Circular (DC) No. 39, is implementing the ban on the importation of live animals, products, and by-products from these countries.

“There is a need to prevent the entry of the FMD virus to protect the health of the FMD-susceptible animal population,” the DA said in the order.

FMD is a highly contagious viral disease that primarily affects livestock such as cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, and buffaloes.

While rarely fatal in adult animals, the disease poses a high mortality rate among young animals, according to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).

As such, the import ban on the seven countries covers live swine, bovines, water buffaloes, semen, skeletal muscle meat, casings, tallow, hooves, and horns.

Certain commodities considered safe under the WOAH’s Terrestrial Animal Health Code are still permitted, subject to the country’s strict import terms and conditions.

These include ultra-high temperature (UHT) milk and its derivatives; heat-treated meat products packed in hermetically sealed containers; protein meal and gelatine; limed hides, pickled pelts, and semi-processed leather.

On the other hand, the DA issued DC No. 38 to lift the temporary ban on the importation of FMD-susceptible animals, products, and by-products from Greece.

This follows the decision of the WOAH’s Scientific Commission for Animal Diseases to reinstate the FMD-free status of a containment zone in Greece.

“This circular is hereby issued to lift the temporary ban on the importation of FMD-susceptible animals, their products and by-products originating from Greece. All import transactions of the above commodities shall be in accordance with existing rules and regulations,” the DA said.