President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has instructed the Department of Agriculture (DA) to accelerate livestock consolidation and reinforce biosecurity measures to curb the spread of African swine fever (ASF).
Speaking at a meeting with the Regional Development Council 3 (Central Luzon) at the CSJDM Convention Center in San Jose Del Monte City, Bulacan, on Friday, Marcos underscored the need for stringent biosecurity protocols alongside ongoing ASF vaccination efforts.
He warned that even if hogs are vaccinated, future stocks remain at risk if piggeries lack proper management.
“The key to this is consolidation. We are working on it because in backyard farms, controlling biosecurity is very challenging,” Marcos said, as quoted by the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) in a statement on Saturday.
“Our plan is to establish secure, biosecure facilities. However, this is proving to be difficult as many people are reluctant to give up their animals.”
Biosecurity and vaccination efforts
DA Undersecretary Designate for Livestock Constante Palabrica assured the President that the agency is actively implementing biosecurity measures and educating farmers on best practices.
He stated that once vaccinated, 80 percent of hogs are well-protected against ASF.
Palabrica also reported that the ASF situation is under control, with 50,000 hogs already immunized under the ongoing vaccination program.
“We have procured around 500,000 ASF vaccine doses, and nearly 200,000 will be administered here in Region 3,” he said.
“So far, we’re seeing promising results. Once the Bureau of Animal Industry compiles all data, we will submit it to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to assess the vaccine’s efficacy and effectiveness, as required under the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between BAI and FDA.”
The data will be used to secure a modified release permit, followed by full approval for commercial distribution.
Road to commercial vaccination
The DA anticipates receiving approval for commercial ASF vaccination by April, which will be crucial in expediting the recovery of the local hog industry, particularly in the third and fourth quarters of 2024.
Government-supervised vaccinations are currently underway in selected areas, along with strict border control measures to prevent the further spread of ASF.
As part of this effort, at least 490,000 doses of ASF AVAC live vaccines are set to be administered under the government-controlled vaccination program.
