ILOILO City – Hog raisers in Western Visayas are against the national government’s recent move of lowering tariffs on pork imports to boost the country’s supply.
Elma Peña, president of the Sibalom Integrated Livestock and Poultry Raisers Association (SILPRA) in Antique, said the move is a threat to the country’s hog industry, especially now that only Western Visayas and Central Visayas remain free from the African swine fever (ASF).
“Ngaa ma-import kita?” Peña asked. “Amo pa ‘na karun ang halinan ka sakit. Ang ASF sa imported nga pork naghalin.”
The region should safeguard its borders against the possible entry of ASF, she added.
Western Visayas has a P20-billion hog industry and 80 percent of this is backyard hog raisers.
“Ma-ayo kami tani nga kon pwede indi anay magsulod ang Luzon nga mga truckers sa Western Visayas. I-safeguard gid naton nga indi makasulod ang ASF kay ma-support gid kami sa government sa pag-supply sang baboy sa Luzon,” said Peña.
President Rodrigo Duterte recently issued Executive Order (EO) 128 which reduced tariff rates for both in-quota and out-quota imports of pork.
Tariff rates for imported pork within the minimum access volume will be down to five percent for the first three months upon the EO’s effectivity and 10 percent for the fourth to 12th month from the current rate of 30 percent.
If import hogs will start invading Philippine markets, Peña said, this may also mean fewer hog heads from Western Visayas for shipment to Luzon.
Antique is sending 10 hog vans – with at least 80 hog heads in each van – three times a week in Luzon, said Peña.
The price of live hogs may also drop.
Currently, the price per kilo per live weight of hogs in Antique is P165 to P170.
For the pork meat, prices in the region now hover around P255 per kilo on average compared to last month’s P245. In Antique, specifically in Sibalom town, it rose up to P270 per kilo.
“Wala man sila support sa amon sang gapamirdi kami. Bisan isa ka bag nga feeds wala sila hatag, tapos subong ma-import sila? Ang gina-income sang gobyerno nga tariff buhinan pa nila,”Peña lamented.
Instead of importation, Peña suggested that the region’s hog raisers should instead be given assistance by the government so they can expand their production and sustain the pork needs of Luzon.
“Buligan na lang daad kami para mag-expand kami. Capital man lang ang kulang sa amon,” said Peña.
Department of Agriculture records showed that as of third week of March, about 70,000 heads of live hogs have been delivered to Metro Manila from the region./PN
