With the rising cases of African swine fever (ASF) seriously affecting the livestock industry, the Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines is now urging the national government to place the country under a state of calamity.
In an interview over the ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC) on Sunday, federation chairperson and AGAP party-list Rep. Nicanor Briones emphasized the need to place the nation under such a declaration to release enough government funding for the procurement of ASF vaccines.
Thus far, the government through the Department of Agriculture (DA) rolled out 600,000 doses of vaccines to areas with reported widespread outbreak of the diseases, which include Batangas, among other affected provinces.
“Our request is (for the government) to declare a state of calamity or emergency nationwide, so we can prepare the funds because the 600,000 doses are really not enough. We have 9.9 million population of existing hogs and out of that, we have 5.4 almost 6 million under the care of our backyard raisers,” Briones told ANC.
Briones said they are quite satisfied with the quick action taken by the DA in implementing a ‘controlled vaccination rollout’ to contain the spread of ASF. The federation has been closely monitoring the situation to assess its effectiveness.
The party-list lawmaker said it is extremely important to control this outbreak to prevent shortage of pork supply in the market. As of Sunday, August 11, he said there are already 64 towns stricken by ASF across 22 provinces.
The Department of Agriculture is setting up multiple livestock checkpoints across Luzon in a bid to curb the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Batangas.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the checkpoints are a temporary measure while the government awaits the arrival of ASF vaccines, which could take several weeks.
He also raised concerns over unscrupulous hog traders selling diseased pigs, which he said worsened the outbreak.
“We have the funds to procure the vaccines and the emergency funds to indemnify hog raisers adversely affected by the resurgence of the ASF virus,” Tiu Laurel said.
Agriculture assistant secretary for Swine and Poultry Constante Palabrica said the additional border controls aim to prevent the movement of diseased hogs, a major contributing factor to the rapid spread of ASF in Batangas.
“We have set up additional livestock quarantines and will keep them in place at least until December 31. Policemen, along with the Bureau of Animal Industry and other DA personnel, will staff the checkpoints,” Palabrica said.
Palabrica, a veterinary medicine expert, also noted that the border controls will help prevent the transport of other diseased animals, including birds.
The DA earlier announced that eight towns in Batangas are now affected by ASF, namely Lobo and Calatagan, which are under a state of calamity, as well as Lian, Rosario, Talisay, Lipa, Tui, and San Juan.
According to the Bureau of Animal Industry, ASF has spread across all 17 regions of the Philippines and affected 74 provinces.
As of August 8, at least 64 municipalities in 22 provinces have reported active ASF cases.
The ASF outbreak had a devastating effect on the national hog population, which significantly dropped from 12.7 million when the viral disease started in 2019 to an estimated 9.9 million by the end of 2023.
DA spokesperson Arnel de Mesa said the agency allocated 10,000 vaccines for emergency procurement and is distributing test kits to identify potential ASF cases.
The federation warned that if the outbreak is not contained swiftly, pork prices could significantly increase come the Christmas season.
“One month ago, the farmgate price was at P220 per kilo. But in areas where there is an outbreak, the going price is P2,000 per head – or about P10 per kilo for a 20-kilo sow,” Briones said.
