BACOLOD City – Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has urged swine raisers in Negros Occidental to sustain their initiatives to keep the province free from African swine fever (ASF).
“Continue to make extra effort to prevent the entry of ASF,” Lacson stressedduring the oath-taking rites of officers of the Alliance of Hog Raisers Association of Negros Occidental (AHRANO) held at the Governor’s Office.
Sworn in was the new set of officers led by president Ric Lauron, who hails from Himamaylan City.
As a member of the Provincial ASF Task Force, the organization is actively involved in surveillance and monitoring to prevent the entry of the hog disease in the province.
The AHRANO has 15,000 individual members from various towns and cities in the province. The organization is being supervised by the Provincial Veterinary Office headed by Dr. Renante Decena,
Negros Occidental, the Philippines’ top backyard swine producer, has banned the entry of live pigs, pork, and pork-based products from Luzon and Mindanao, which have confirmed cases of ASF, to protect its P6-billion swine industry.
Earlier, Lacson directed the local chief executives of the province to ensure the implementation of preventive and safeguard measures as embodied in the “ASF Prevention Ordinance of Negros Occidental.”
In December, the province imposed a permanent ban on the entry of pork from Luzon and other affected areas to the province through the ordinance and in February, Lacson issued a memorandum to all the mayors to prohibit the entry of live pigs, pork products, and pork-based items coming from all areas in Mindanao.
The provincial government remains to be on a “very high alert” as ASF continues to pose a threat to its hog industry.
In its command conference last month, the Provincial Task Force on ASF reviewed the memorandum order and other policies of safeguarding the swine industry.
Decena, co-chair of the task force, has underscored the importance of sustaining the preventive measures, particularly the inspection and monitoring of ports in the province.
Negros Occidental has a current annual swine production of 510,000 heads from both backyard and commercial raisers. (With a report from PNA/PN)
