MANILA, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines has issued a temporary ban on the importation of animal products from Germany amid a recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in the European country, local media reported Wednesday.
Philippine Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said in a memorandum issued on Monday that the import ban is part of the government's emergency measure to prevent the dangerous communicable animal disease from infecting local animals.
"The order shall take effect immediately and shall remain enforced unless revoked in writing," the memo read.
However, certain products are exempt from the ban, such as ultra-high temperature milk and derivatives, heat-treated meat products in hermetically sealed containers, protein meal and gelatin, and in vivo-derived bovine embryos.
Germany notified the World Organization for Animal Health of confirmed FMD cases in domestic buffaloes in January.
Official data showed that the Philippines in 2024 imported 3,177.5 metric tons of beef from Germany, accounting for around 0.5 percent of the country's total beef imports. ■
