June 16, 2020

 

 

As the Philippines copes with the impact of ASF, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is launching a hog restocking programme valued at PHP400 million to boost local pork supply in two key-producing regions, BusinessMirror reported.

 

The fatal hog disease has forced the government to cull over 250,000 pigs, or at least 2%, of the country's 12 million pig herd.

 

The reduction in live hogs has forced farm-gate prices to go beyond PHP150 per kilogramme and has raised retail pork prices to nearly PHP250 per kg, according to industry players.

 

In a recent virtual briefing, the DA announced that it has mobilised PHP400 million for its hog restocking programme in Central Luzon and Calabarzon, with each region receiving PHP200 million.

 

The DA will distribute free piglets to hog raisers, with members of community cooperatives being the priority beneficiaries, in non-ASF areas in the two regions.

 

The DA said it will extend help to back-yard hog raisers, who have been hit hardest by ASF based on data released publicly by the government. The DA added that they will also assist commercial hog raisers via low-interest loans.

 

Central Luzon is the top hog-producing region in the country followed by Calabarzon. The two regions account for a combined volume of 813,293 tonnes, which is 35% of the country's nearly 2.3 million tonnes output last year.

 

However, Central Luzon and Calabarzon were hardest hit by ASF. The country's ASF ground zero is in Rizal province.

 

The Manila Meat Dealers Association recently said retail pork prices rose due to the difficulty in sourcing local hogs.

 

The group's members struggled to procure local hogs after ASF struck the country as some back-yard farms in key producing areas like Calabarzon stopped raising pigs.

 

In a worst-case scenario, the country could suffer a 31-day pork shortage this year if ASF continues to affect Luzon and Mindanao, based on the DA's projections.

 

The DA also issued a special order authorising the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to spend PHP130 million for the emergency purchase of goods, services and other related expenditures to boost the country's fight against ASF.

 

BAI Director Ronnie D. Domingo stated that the additional fund would be used to buy laboratory supplies and equipment, including test kits, and hire additional manpower for veterinary, quarantine services and depopulation activities.

 

The agency would also procure stun guns and disinfectants for culling operations and to conduct capacity-building activities.

 

The devastation caused by the fatal ASF on the local hog sector may pull down the country's pork output this year to a six-year low of 1.45 million tonnes, the USDA said.

 

Philippine pork consumption this year could fall by 4.26% to 1.729 million tonnes, the lowest in five years, while imports are expected to rise by 26% to 280,000 tonnes to plug the shortfall in domestic production, USDA data showed.