Photo courtesy of PNA.
Iloilo province confirmed its first African swine fever case this year after five pigs in a backyard farm in Barotac Viejo tested positive for the disease.
Provincial Veterinarian Darel Tabuada said Thursday that the infected animals included one sow and four pigs.
He said the province immediately sent a response team after receiving the laboratory results from the Department of Agriculture’s Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Western Visayas on Tuesday.
By the time authorities arrived, the infected animals had already been properly disposed of.
The area was also cleaned and disinfected to prevent possible spread.
Tabuada said monitoring by the provincial and municipal agriculture offices showed no suspected cases in nearby communities, making the case an isolated incursion.
The provincial government is now completing requirements to reclassify Barotac Viejo from a red, or infected, zone to a pink, or buffer, zone if no additional cases are found.
Tabuada urged hog raisers to strengthen biosecurity measures, including farm fencing, footbaths, movement control, and avoidance of swill feeding, warning that ASF remains a threat in Iloilo after the province recorded 28 positive cases in 2025.