Pork demand in Davao drops amid ASF outbreak

The demand for pork products in Davao City has waned amid the African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak in Davao Occidental.

According to a Tuesday report by Tek Ocampo on Balitanghali, the pigs sold by a market stall had dropped to two from seven per day after the outbreak.

Meanwhile, the number of pigs culled in Calinan, Davao had risen to 2,780, according to Agriculture Secretary Willliam Dar. Authorities started the culling on Saturday.

"Wala namang problema basta bayaran lang. Sayang baboy ko," a hog raiser said.

Raisers were paid the farmgate prices for every pig culled, with farmers were paid P1,500 for every piglet.

To prevent the swine fever from spreading further, authorities had prohibited the entry of all individuals in two barangays in ASF-hit Calinan.

Officials placed Davao Occidental under a state of calamity after hogs death in the municipality of Don Marcelino climbed to 5,000. 

The local government is looking into swill or food waste imported from Indonesia as the cause of the outbreak. — Joahna Lei Casilao/DVM, GMA News