Pork industry leaders urge State of National Emergency due to ASF | ABS-CBN

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Pork industry leaders urge State of National Emergency due to ASF

Pork industry leaders urge State of National Emergency due to ASF

Jervis Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

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Nick Cañas, a meat vendor at the Commonwealth Market in Quezon City says there has been a dip in prices probably due to a scare caused by African swine fever. Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN NewsNick Cañas, a meat vendor at the Commonwealth Market in Quezon City says there has been a dip in prices probably due to a scare caused by African swine fever. Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN News 

MANILA - Pork producers and swine industry leaders on Tuesday asked the government to declare a State of National Emergency due to African swine fever (ASF). 

The industry players said they want to expedite the rollout of vaccines to stop the industry's bleeding after the resurgence of the disease in many parts of the country in the past few months.

In a letter to the Department of Agriculture, Nicanor Briones of the Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines appealed to the government to make the vaccines commercially available.

"Hindi kami kontento na maghihintay ng matagal kasi bawat araw napakarami na namamatay na baboy gawa nitong African Swine Fever," Briones said.

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(We are not contented on waiting because a lot of pigs die daily due to African Swine Fever.)

He warned that some hograisers have resorted to illicit vaccines bought online due to slow rollout of the government controlled vaccination.

"Marami na rin ang nagbabakuna na hindi kontrolado ng gobyerno, sa takot sa ASF, kanya kanya nang diskarte, hindi namomonitor yun ng government," Briones said.



(A lot of hograisers are vaccinating without government permission due to ASF fears. They go on their own way, and this is not being monitored by the government.)

Since the initial rollout, only 41 pigs have been given the AVAC vaccine. Meanwhile, the Bureau of Animal Industry said that they have recorded higher level of antibodies for those swine who received the vaccines.

DIP IN RETAIL PRICE

Retailers of pork in Commonwealth Market said there has been a dip in prices probably due to a scare caused by ASF.

"Nung nakaraan nung pagputok ng ASF, humina talaga ang paninda, ngayon bumabalik na," said Nick Cañas, a pork retailer.

(When the ASF issue resurfaced, our sales really got low. But it's now recovering.)

From P300 per kilo, pork prices went down to P270. Retailers also say they have noticed fewer customers buying pork products.

"Medyo bumaba ang presyo yung dating 300 ngayon nasa 270 na lang, alam nila sa palengke di kami kumukuha ng backyard," Cañas added.

(Prices went down from P300-P270. But our customers know these are safe as these came from legitimate farms.)

ASF can be fatal for pigs but cannot be transmitted to humans. It's first recorded in the country in 2019. Higher prices of pork were blamed for pushing inflation up in 2021. 

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