PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan (PIA) — Ven Marck Botin considered raising hogs as his alternate livelihood source to meet his family’s needs. He started with two piglets until he had saved enough to get two breeders and six fattening hogs.
To earn from hog raising, he sells pork meat or live fattening hogs in the market. He sees the need to go along with the pricing in the market to keep his business alive. However, Botin admitted that his capital has not returned yet in three years of hog raising.
“Kung tutuusin, hindi pa ako kumikita. Talo pa ako, pero tuluy-tuloy lang, baka kikita rin ng maganda sa Disyembre,” he said.
Local raisers in Palawan like Botin deal with the high price of fuel for transporting hogs, increased rates of hog feeds, and low buying prices for live weight pigs. Aside from suffering from the operational costs, the presence of African Swine Fever (ASF) also adds to their concern.
The Provincial Veterinary Office depopulates the remaining live pigs on Cocoro island to contain the spread of African Swine Fever. (Photo from Dr. Darius Mangcucang)
About 285 hogs on Cocoro Island in Magsaysay town were depopulated by the Provincial Veterinary Office (ProVet) after testing positive for ASF. ProVet estimates P1.3M worth of losses from 84 raisers after an ASF-positive pork meat was brought from Antique in August.
Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Darius Mangcucang said that hogs within the 500-meter radius of the affected zone must be culled to contain the spread. The failure to control the ASF virus can damage the entire swine industry and affect food security.
“Ang maganda dito ay na-control natin, sa ibang isla ay ubos. Simula noong nag-report ay pinapuntahan ko na agad for sample— ubos na ang baboy doon, ang activities na lang natin ay monitoring na lang at disinfection ng premises,” he said.
Palawan was ASF-free from 2019 to 2022 and one of the green zones supporting hogs for the repopulation of those affected areas in the country. Even though Palawan recorded its first ASF case, ProVet said the province can still supply hogs outside given that the town to export must have Recognition on Active Surveillance (RAS) applied for in the Department of Agriculture (DA) and certified by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).
No ASF presence yet in mainland Palawan
After hearing the news about the ASF virus in Cocoro Island, Botin was one of the raisers who decided to sell some of his hogs, even losing almost P10,000 from the original cost.
“Maraming natakot. Katulad sa sitwasyon ko, natakot ‘yung mga buyer ko ng biik, kaya naibenta ko ng mura. In-all in ko ‘yong sampung biik, P25k lamang. Kung walang stigma, perhaps naibenta ko ng P35k ang mga biik,” he said.
The ProVet team disinfects the burial area of culled pigs on Cocoro Island, Magsaysay. (Photo by Dr. Darius Mangcucang)
Santigao and Mangcucang both debunked the claims of ASF virus in the mainland Palawan. It is just a strategy of other buyers to get hogs at cheaper prices from farmers.
“May mga tao na taking the opportunity to earn more, kapag may balitang ganyan ay kinakausap nila ang farmers na may ASF na sa ibang lugar, most likely tatawid yan dito at maaapektuhan. Iyon ang buying strategies nila para mabili sa farmers ng mura,” she said.
Efforts to contain ASF and secure Palawan mainland borders
Some towns have already activated their ASF task forces and increased the presence of information materials. Although confirmed negative from laboratory tests, the island towns of Cuyo, Magsaysay mainland, and Agutaya also strengthened their border control to avoid the entry of ASF.
The local government units of Magsaysay and Cuyo also banned the entry of pork meat into their towns. Cocoro Island is over an hour sea-travel away from the Magsaysay mainland. Aside from checkpoints through barangay officials and Philippine National Police (PNP), there were also additional footbaths installed, as well as quarantine officers designated.
City Veterinarian Dr. Indira Santiago said that any symptoms or suspicious deaths must be reported to their office to gather samples and implement immediate action.
“Kahit chismis lang kailangan patulan kasi hindi mo sigurado kung nagsisimula na talaga kung hindi i-monitor kung gaano katotoo ‘yong lumalabas na issue,” she said.
Challenge of Palawan and PPC in monitoring
The city and provincial offices are working closely to trace online sellers of banned products, which some are allegedly storing in luggage bags. The city government of Puerto Princesa already banned the entry of pork meat and pork-based products into the city in March 2020.
Establishing shot of Puerto Princesa seaport. (Photo by Rachel Ganancial)
ProVet and City Vet share the same concern over small ports that could be entry points for banned products. Even though airports and seaports have strengthened their quarantine controls, they cannot assure security at small ports with their limited manpower.
“Ang tao natin ay kulang talaga—marami pa na pwede pagdaanan ng bangka. Hindi talaga namin kung kami-kami lang, kailangan mapayuhan din ang mga tao,” Mangcucang said.
“Kagaya ng port sa Tagburos, Macarascas na hindi namo-monitor at under na sa barangay kaya importante ang pakikiisa ng mga barangay kapitan para sa observation ng mga pumapasok na produkto,” Santiago added.
There is a high chance of ASF entering mainland Palawan if locals do not cooperate with the efforts implemented by the government, Mangcusang said. As of now, he is assured that Palawan has strong border control against the virus and close coordination with the quarantine stations in Baseco and North Harbor. According to Mangcusang, the case of ASF is now under control and isolated in the island of Cocoro in Magsaysay.
One of the pigs raised at a backyard farm in Puerto Princesa City (Photo from Palawan News website)
P1.2 B industry for Puerto Princesa
Based on computation, the city might lose P1.2 B swine industry once ASF entered the mainland and spread out in Puerto Princesa. City Vet recorded 100,000 hog populations raised from backyard farms, which helped supply the meat requirement in the city. In 2022, 74,000 heads were consumed by locals in Puerto Princesa. Around 250 heads are slaughtered daily and supplied to markets.
“Kapag naapektuhan ang Puerto, malaking industriya ang masasagasaan. Nagulat din kami sa computation considering na wala tayong large commercial farms and yet ganoon pa rin kalaki ang maaapektuhan,” she said.
Local hog raisers like Botin expressed hope that they will be protected against ASF and the support to local products over imported will be strengthened.
Palawan has no estimation yet on the total worth of the swine industry in the province due to challenges in data banking. But ProVet stated that it could be higher than the P1.2 B estimation of the city as Palawan slaughters an estimated 400 heads per day to meet its daily meat requirement.
The government recognizes that hog production is an important sector for the country’s economy and food security. Consequently, it has implemented various assistance programs to support hog raisers, especially during challenging times such as the outbreak of ASF. These programs include financial aid for re-stocking purposes, veterinary services for disease control and prevention, technical support through training programs and capacity building initiatives, and subsidized access to inputs such as feed and vaccines. Additionally, the provincial government collaborates with industry stakeholders to develop strategies that promote sustainable hog production practices and improve market opportunities for local producers.(RPG/PIA MIMAROPA – Palawan)
