Philippines mulls increasing pork imports

The Philippines is mulling a hike in the volume of pork imports to ensure a stable supply in the country, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said Monday.

Dar said the government is looking into the possibility of increasing the minimum access volume (MAV) for pork, which is currently 54,000 metric tons.

“Pinag-aaralan na namin yung dagdagan itong minimum access volume to triple what is allowed,” Dar said at the Laging Handa briefing.

The Cabinet official’s statement comes as 11 of the 17 regions in the country reported cases of African swine fever. Dar said the ASF has already affected 2,130 barangays.

Last year, President Rodrigo Duterte created a task force to prevent the entry and control the spread of animal-borne diseases amid the ASF outbreak in some areas in the country.

The National Task Force on Animal-Borne Diseases is chaired by the Agriculture Secretary with the Health Secretary as vice chairperson. —KBK, GMA News