MANILA – A lawmaker on Wednesday backed a proposal from the hog industry to provide free African swine fever (ASF) vaccine shots to the hogs of backyard growers.
In a statement, Camarines Sur Representative Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr. said the industry proposal would enable the government to beat this killer disease, boost domestic swine stocks, and pull down eventually the retail prices of liempo (belly), kasim (shoulder) and other pork items.
He noted that the backyard growers, who account for 70 percent to 80 percent of the country’s pork supply, have been hit hard by ASF outbreaks since 2019.
“As I have proposed since last year, the government needs to shoulder the cost of the vaccines for small-scale or backyard raisers, considering that many of them are still reeling from the twin impacts of ASF, which resurfaced locally in 2019, and the three-year Covid-19 pandemic, and are thus in no position to pay for this extra medical expense amid their business losses,” Villafuerte said.
Villafuerte said the proposal comes amid the government’s ongoing efforts to fast-track the rollout of ASF vaccines nationwide to curb the spread of the animal disease in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive.
He said small hog farmers lack the financial capacity to bear the cost of vaccinations, making it crucial for the government to step in.
Villafuerte also proposed tapping local government units (LGUs) in deputizing local vaccinators in their respective areas of jurisdiction to administer the shots to the hogs.
“I support this (livestock industry) proposal for the government to give priority to giving free anti-ASF shots to the hogs of backyard raisers as the DA, through its BAI (Bureau of Animal Industry), fast-tracks its vaccine rollout as ordered by the President,” he said.
In a sectorial meeting last month, President Marcos directed the DA to accelerate the vaccine rollout as ASF continues to pose a challenge to the government’s efforts to manage food inflation.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the DA plans to procure 600, 000 doses of the ASF vaccine by December, with an initial 10, 000 doses already set for administration by the end of September and another 150, 000 doses expected to arrive by mid-October.
The DA and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have announced that 150, 000 doses of the ASF vaccine from a Vietnam-based company have already been rolled out in September. The distribution prioritized eligible commercial farms, semi-commercial enterprises, and clustered backyard farms.
Laurel emphasized the importance of a swift vaccine rollout to restore hog growers’ confidence in swine farming.
Laurel said the DA is targeting an increase in hog production from the current 7.5 million to 14 million. (PNA)