BACOLOD City – The Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) of Negros Occidental is optimistic there won’t be increases in the prices of live-weight pork, although these could remain high in various public markets.
Based on the latest monitoring by the PVO, the town of Moises Padilla currently has the highest live-weight pork price at P180 per kilo, while the cheapest is from the town of Don Salvador Benedicto at P160 per kilo.
Dr. Placeda Lemana, PVO head, said they are expecting that live-weight pork prices will no longer rise as the peak season had already passed.
She added that the province will soon begin its sentinelling program in an attempt to increase the number of hogs.
The repopulation of hogs is also seen to stabilize the price of pork in the province.
Last week, the PVO said cases of African swine fever (ASF) and hog cholera in Negros Occidental were under control.
Hog raisers were no longer experiencing losses with prices of live-weight pork at P180 and higher per kilo compared to when various swine diseases struck, PVO added.
Negros Occidental, which has a P6-billion swine industry, recorded almost 18,000 hog mortalities in some 20 local government units since April 2023 due to various diseases, such as ASF and hog cholera. (Watchmen Daily Journal)/PN
