DA mulls P210/kilo floor price for hogs

The Department of Agriculture (DA) is considering a proposal to establish a minimum price of P210 per kilo for live hogs in order to assist farmers dealing with declining farmgate prices. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. informed The STAR that while the agency lacks the legal authority to enforce such a policy, it would request industry buyers to adopt the floor price.

At the National Swine Summit, hog industry stakeholders highlighted the drop in live hog farmgate prices to between P120 and P150 per kilo, which is below the usual break-even point for hog raisers.

Hog raisers urged the government to regulate buying prices, advocating for a P210 per kilo floor price and improved tracking of imported pork into the country. Earlier, the DA attributed the decline in farmgate prices to the industry's haste to sell their livestock due to concerns about an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak. The statement also rejected industry claims that the price drop was caused by a surge in imports.

The Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) reported that pork meat imports reached 541,405 metric tons in seven months, a 10-percent increase from the same period in 2025. The DA's price monitoring revealed that a kilo of local pork belly or liempo costs around P380 as of September 15.

Stakeholders at the swine industry meeting requested updates on the ASF vaccine rollout, expressed concerns about biosecurity risks near breeder sows, and called for subsidized access to low-income raisers. The DA, through the BAI, had already approved the commercial use of the ASF AVAC live vaccines and planned to support backyard growers through government-led vaccination drives.

Producers also suggested simplifying inter-provincial shipping clearances, expediting local government unit zoning upgrades, and investing in local cold chain and meat cutting facilities to decrease dependence on commercial importers.