The province of Negros Occidental has shipped a total of 17,700 heads of live hogs to various areas across the country from April to mid-June this year, records of the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) showed.
Dr. Renante Decena, the provincial veterinarian, said in a statement on Wednesday that the volume can still increase in the coming days, based on the trend in the past months.
For May, shipments totaled 6,829 heads, including 4,423 heads from commercial raisers, and 2,406 heads of backyard swine while in April, some 8,285 heads were shipped, of which 3,775 heads sourced from commercial farms and 4,510 heads, from backyard farms.
These were also delivered to different parts of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
“The notable decrease in May was due to various weather disturbances affecting the movement of cargo vessels,” Decena said.
He noted that business confidence for commercial and backyard raisers in Negros Occidental continues to improve as live hog prices hit a significant price increase of PHP5 per kilo from April to May.
The average price was pegged at PHP137.50 per kilogram live weight for April while it was PHP142.50 per kilogram in May.
Meanwhile, a total of 2,586 heads were shipped to Luzon and Visayas markets during the first half of June.
Decena said the lower price of PHP132.50 per kilogram live weight was noted during the first half of this month due to the increase in local hog production.
“This shows that there is no significant increase of pork prices in the market affecting local consumers amid the continuous outgoing shipment of hogs by the province,” he added.
The PVO chief said that the provincial government is upbeat in having the capacity to accommodate the increasing demands of hog supply in different parts of the country for the coming months while ensuring sustainable local supply.
Source: Philippines News Agency
