Livestock producers said farm-gate prices of live hogs declined slightly after the government announced that an unidentified virus killed hogs in some backyard farms in the country.
Price monitoring conducted by the Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines Inc. showed that farm-gate prices in areas where there are reported unusual hog deaths dropped by at least P2 per kilogram.
In Bulacan, traders bought live hogs at an average price of P124 to P126 per kg, lower than the quotations of P126 to P128 per kg registered on August 13.
The live weight price of hogs in Rizal also fell to P120 per kg, from P122 per kg.
Also, prices of cull sows in Bulacan and Rizal fell by as much as P8 per kg on a weekly basis. Cull sows are those that are culled from the farm because they are too old or they suffer certain problems that result in low productivity. They are not to be confused with the hogs that are covered by the government’s “culling” operations in certain parts of the country as it seeks to contain the spread of a still-unidentified disease causing unusual spikes in hog deaths.
As of August 20, cull sows were priced at P63 to P65 per kg lower than P69 to P71 per kg recorded on August 13.
Cull sows in Rizal are now sold at P68 per kg, from P71 per kg recorded as of August 20.
ProPork President Edwin G. Chen confirmed the drop in prices and attributed this to “softening demand,” which he said was caused by news reports about the hog disease.
Chen said his group expects pork demand to further soften and prices to drop in the coming days.
Steeper cuts
Philippine Association of Feed Millers Inc. (Pafmi) President Terence S. Uygongco said his group observed that the price of live hogs in some areas dropped by as much as 10 percent to 15 percent after the DA’s announcement.
“The drop was monitored nationwide. [In] Mindoro [prices have] dropped to P85 per [kg],” Uygongco told the BusinessMirror via SMS. “We feel this is [caused] by the sudden scare caused by the DA’s announcement among consumers, thus the drop in prices.”
However, National Federation of Hog Farmers Inc. (NFHFI) President Chester Warren Tan said price drops during this quarter are normal as monsoon rains affect hog production. “Wet market prices hardly move, normally they are steady or about +/- 5 to P10,” Tan told the BusinessMirror via SMS.
“We assure the public that local or domestic produce are safe. Demand is normal and we also assure that stakeholders will not take advantage of the situation to increase the prices of live hogs,” he added.
Pafmi’s support
Pafmi has also thrown its full support behind the government’s efforts to fight “economically significant diseases,” particularly African swine fever (ASF) which the government has been determined to keep out of the country, by ensuring that their feed products are free from viruses. Pafmi represents 80 percent of the country’s feed milling industry.
“As an organization, we recognize our role in helping the government by producing safe feeds for the livestock industry and extending our ability to be part of the campaign of the government against ASF,” Uygongco said in his advisory to Pafmi members. A copy of the advisory dated August 23 was obtained by the BusinessMirror.
In his advisory, Uygongco encouraged Pafmi members to implement proactive measures to prevent the entry of ASF into the country.
Uygongco recommended that members move to ensure “responsible importation by sourcing raw materials from ASF-free countries.” He added that feed millers should observe proper logistics protocols to avoid contaminating products with any animal virus.
These protocols include the use of sail cloth or similar materials to cover the feeds during delivery and observing proper disinfection of trucks before and after delivery.
Pafmi also vowed to “participate on extensive education about swill feeding and ASF prevention.”
“The impact of ASF is so disruptive leading to major losses economically, trade imbalances and food insecurity,” Uygongco said. “With this, as an organization, we are willing to collaborate [with] the government on its programs against ASF.”
Uygongco also encouraged the government “to make a strong stand against swill feeding” as such practice is the “primary source of outbreaks.” He said that such practice “could be controlled by ensuring that the food waste will not be fed to the pigs.”
“As reported from other ASF-infected countries, swill feeding is the primary source of outbreaks,” he added.
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