FACT CHECK: No ban on consumption of processed meats; video is AI-generated

Claim: A ban on processed meats such as hotdogs and longganisa will be imposed after dog meat was found to be the primary ingredient.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: A Facebook video posted on December 6 features a pseudo-newcast of a male announcer saying: “Bawal muna magkain ng mga hotdog at longganisa, dahil nabalita na ang pangunahing sangkap nito ay aso. Ito ay kumalat na sa ating bansa, mag-ingat. Mga pangalan ng hotdog at longganisa na pinagbabawal kainin, sa listahan makikita sa post namin at comment section.”

(Eating hotdogs and longganisa is temporarily prohibited because it was reported that their main ingredient is dog meat. This has already spread in our country, so be careful. The names of hotdog and longganisa brands that are banned can be found in our post and in the comment section.)

A link to the alleged list of banned brands is included in its caption. 

The post has garnered over 1.2 million views, 15,000 reactions, 12,000 shares, and 601 comments as of writing. 

The facts: There is no nationwide ban on processed meats such as hotdogs or longganisa. No advisory from the Department of Agriculture (DA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or any other government agency supports this claim.

The video used in the claim is AI-generated, identified by a Google Gemini watermark visible in the lower-right corner. Gemini uses Veo 3, an advanced AI text-to-video generator. 

Hive Moderation also flagged the footage as 77.1% likely to be AI-generated or deepfake content.

The alleged link to the list of “banned” meat brands is also fabricated. Instead of directing users to any official list, it redirects to an e-commerce website, as verified through Bitly, putting users at risk of phishing. (READ: Phishing 101: How to spot and avoid phishing)

In the past, a temporary transport restriction was implemented in 2019 and 2020, which limited the movement of pork products from Luzon to the Visayas and Mindanao. This was meant to help contain the spread of African swine fever, and not because dog meat was allegedly used in the production of meat products.

No “dog meat” in processed meats: Commercial hotdogs and longganisa sold in the Philippines are made from properly inspected pork, chicken, or beef. 

In 2016, then-agriculture secretary Proceso Alcala signed Administrative Circular No. 1 s. 2016, which prescribed a national plan to eliminate the dog meat trade. The directive reinforced the Philippine Meat Inspection Code (Republic Act No. 9296, as amended by Republic Act No. 10536), which excluded dogs from the list of food animals, making the sale and consumption of dog meat illegal.

Fake links: Rappler has flagged multiple posts that use links to redirect users to bogus websites:

• FACT CHECK: ‘Pamaskong handog’ news report is AI-generated, link redirects to shopping site
• FACT CHECK: Registration links for PWD cash aid lead to phishing, shopping sites
• FACT CHECK: Registration links for ‘Christmas bonus’ payouts lead to phishing site
• FACT CHECK: Links listing side effects of COVID-19 vaccines lead to phishing, shopping sites
• FACT CHECK: PCSO scholarship application reel is fake, leads to phishing websites

– Cyril Bocar/Rappler.com

Efren Cyril Bocar is a journalist from Llorente, Eastern Samar who graduated with a degree in English Language Studies at the Visayas State University. Cyril is also a graduate of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship of Rappler for 2024. 

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