Manila, March 19 -- The areas affected by African swine fever (ASF) are now down to 39 barangays, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Wednesday.

This is a significant reduction from the 66 ASF-infected areas logged at the end of February based on the DA Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) data.

DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said most of the reported areas have a single ASF-affected barangay, while the highest was recorded in Torrijos, Marinduque with four affected barangays.

"As of March 14, lalo pang bumaba iyong number of active cases to 39 barangays na lamang in (the number of active cases dropped to just 39 villages in) 27 municipalities and seven regions. Karamihan nito ay nasa Region 7, in particular sa Boh...