Bounty Agro Ventures, Inc. (BAVI) veterinarians and animal health experts joined the recently concluded 84th Conference and Annual Convention of the Philippine Veterinary Medical Association (PVMA) held in Baguio Country Club, Baguio City.
The event is an annual affair that gathers experts in the veterinary profession. BAVI sees this as an opportunity for its veterinarians to advance their knowledge and be informed on the latest technological developments and trends, as well as best practices in the field.
The theme for this year is One Health: Continuing Veterinary Education. There was a series of talks and presentations, which aimed to advance veterinary knowledge, skills and ethical values of the attendees to support and develop an effective One Health operation in the country.
One Health is an approach that requires integrative effort of multiple disciplines to monitor and control public health threats to achieve optimal health for people, animals and the environment.
Among the topics discussed were the Animal Welfare Act by Bureau of Animal Industry, anti-microbial resistance, antibiotic free production, and continuing professional development for the Filipino veterinarians.
According to Dr. Audry Rose Gabonada, a delegate of BAVI, the conference was timely, important and relevant to the attendees. She said, “The conference gave us an opportunity to acquire new knowledge in the field and to strengthen our competence in addressing global threat of zoonotic diseases and fulfilling our roles in food security and bio-security.”
Gabonada further shared that the conference served as a reminder of the true essence of being a public health professional, which is not only about being mindful of the health and welfare of the animals, but more importantly having the desire to promote the well-being of human and environment.
On the other hand, Dr. Jerome Into, contract grower supervisor in BAVI Ormoc Business Center, said he appreciated the importance of innovation in order to have a sustainable production and improved profitability.
“I’ve learned about alternative feed sources like algae that could be used as feed ingredient and the improvement of broiler genetics through the years, as well as the history of Avian Influenza and the continuous antigenic drift and shift that resulted to a variety of subtypes also affecting other animals aside from poultry,” Into said.
BAVI, one of the country’s largest poultry integrators, has always aspired to produce healthy, safe and quality poultry products. Every year, BAVI sends its veterinarians to the PVMA conference to arm them with new knowledge, learnings and best practices in the field.