DA sets live hog floor price at P210 per kilo

MANILA, Philippines, November 5 ------ The Department of Agriculture (DA) and local hog industry groups have agreed to impose a minimum buying price of P210 per kilo of live hogs after farmgate rates plunged below production costs, leaving raisers struggling to recover from rising feed expenses and soft demand.

In a statement, the DA said the move was finalized following consultation with the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG), National Federation of Hog Farmers Inc. and the Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines. “Farmgate prices have fallen sharply, yet consumers have not felt any relief. During my market visits, I have seen liempo (pork belly) still selling for around P400 a kilo,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said.

DA spokesman Arnel de Mesa said the measure has no effectivity date yet, but he assured the public it would be implemented within the year. Hog farmers earlier said that farmgate prices had slid to P150 to P180 per kilo; levels they said were unsustainable for both backyard and commercial raisers.

According to DA, the P210 floor price seeks to prevent further losses among hog producers while keeping pork prices stable for consumers. The DA and hog raisers are also pushing to restore the pork import tariff to 40 from 25 percent under Executive Order 62, saying lower duties have led to excessive imports that flooded the market with cheap pork. “What is happening now to our local hog raisers is similar to the predicament of rice farmers who are bearing the brunt of excessive imports,” SINAG executive director Jayson Cainglet said.

The DA said it would also reinstate a suggested retail price for pork to balance returns across the supply chain and consumer affordability. The agency plans to issue an administrative order to reclassify pork jowls, currently treated as offal, so the product can be levied from a higher tariff. The National Meat Inspection Service, an attached agency of the DA, has also been ordered to intensify market monitoring to ensure compliance with labeling and storage rules.

Source: philstar.com