DAVAO CITY – The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and the provincial government of North Cotabato have identified 20 secluded villages unaffected by the African swine fever (ASF) as pilot areas for a massive hog production program to address the national shortage.
Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said Monday the project would be employing the "Islands of Hope" strategy, which would identify biosecure communities.
Piñol assured MinDA will assist Governor Nancy Catamco in availing of hog production loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).
Catamco designated Provincial Board member Maria Krista Piñol-Solis as the focal person of the province for the program.
Piñol said the identification and validation of the 20 "pilot villages" for the "Islands of Hope Hogstel Program" will start this week, all of which will raise breeders to produce piglets for fattening in local farms.
The actual farm production, he said, would start in 18 months, "during which time the provincial government will initiate steps to establish its own feed milling and production facility and abattoir."
“The barangay government or a farmers' association will be the beneficiary of the loan fund which had been committed by DBP president Emmanuel G. Herbosa during our meeting in Makati City last week,” he added.
Under the "Hogstel" Concept, the MinDA chief said a biosecure facility would be made available to the farmers who will be allocated pens to raise hogs supervised by animal health experts and veterinarians. The farmer-hog raiser will pay fees for using the "Hogstel" to be deducted from the sale of his hogs.
“As the first step, village officials and farming families in the "Islands of Hope" communities will undergo orientation and training on biosecurity to be conducted by a MinDA team to be headed by former Agriculture assistant secretary Dr. Enrico Garzon,” he said.
The biosecurity measures would include closing the "islands of Hope" villages to the entry of processed pork products that had been suspected of causing the spread of the ASF in remote areas of the country. (PNA)
