Manila, May 21 -- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is keen to reinforce inter-agency cooperation in regulating and making available animal vaccines to safeguard animal health and national food security.

The spread of African swine fever (ASF) and avian influenza (AI) is a major animal health threat that has affected the pork and poultry industries in the country, the FDA said in a news release on Wednesday.

To curb the infection and prevent the disruption of the country's food supply chains, FDA Director General Paolo Teston and Department of Agriculture (DA) - Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) Undersecretary Constante Palabrica discussed recently the national programs aimed at controlling both ASF and AI outbreaks.

Teston said the...