Livestock council earmarks P50M for hog restocking program

THE LIVESTOCK Development Council will replace hogs in breeding centers with first-class breeders and give subsidies to backyard hog farmers next year in a bid to increase their output, said the head of the Livestock Development Council. The agency will spend P30 million to buy 500 breeders and start the two-year program of replacing hogs in the artificial breeding centers, said Carlos B. Mendoza, officer-in-charge and executive director of the Livestock Development Council, in an interview late last week. "Through this system, we would be able to replace native hogs in the countryside by upgrading existing stock in artificial breeding centers with quality breeders," he said. Compared with native hogs that bear an average of eight piglets, first-class breeders from accredited local farms should be able to bear two to four more piglets, Mr. Mendoza said. Another P20 million will be allotted to provide subsidies to hog farmers. The government will subsidize P1,000 for every piglet bought by a backyard farmer, at a maximum of two piglets per farmer. Backyard farming accounts for 78% of the country’s hog production. In the nine months to September, hog production dropped 2.74% to 1.318 million metric tons from 1.355 million MT in the same period last year. — N. J. C. Morales, BusinessWorld