MUÑOZ, Nueva Ecija – The Department of Agriculture (DA) officially inaugurated the vaccine unit at the Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases (CenTrAD) on Tuesday. This state-of-the-art facility is dedicated to the development of shots to immunize animals against infectious diseases, particularly African Swine Fever (ASF), Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), and Avian Influenza (AI).
CenTrAD, a joint project of the DA’s Bureau of Animal Industry and Central Luzon State University (CLSU), is funded by the DA. It is set to become the leading agency for the diagnosis, surveillance, research, and technology development related to transboundary animal diseases.
Located adjacent to the CLSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital, CenTrAD houses laboratories for microbiology, virology, parasitology, histopathology, and molecular assays, along with an epidemiology training and digital analysis room. The construction of the entire facility began in 2019, with an estimated cost of P230 million, and was completed in 2022.
The inauguration ceremony was led by Secretary Tiu Laurel, DA Undersecretary for Livestock Dante Palabrica, CLSU President Evaristo Abella, DA National Livestock Program Chief Dr. Claro N. Mingala and Dr. Virginia M. Venturina, Director of CenTrAD. ### (Photos by Gian Carlo Luague, DA-AFID)
