The provincial government of Negros Occidental, through the Provincial Veterinary Office, is distributing 192 breeder piglets and 77 gilts in districts 5 and 6, as part of its Provincial Animal Genetic Improvement Program (PAGIP) under the Abanse Negrense Priority Development Agenda.
Due to the rising cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Luzon and the nearby provinces, the provincial government is providing continuous support in terms of hog production inputs to enable the industry and local stakeholders to survive, Provincial Veterinarian Renante Decena said Tuesday, September 14.
The program primarily aims to acquire an additional foundation of breeder stock for local hog raisers to be distributed for breeding and production, he added.
The cost for the program this year amounted to P8 million.
The program centers on local hog production to meet demands from other provinces as well as local supply considering that the province is the top pig producer in Western Visayas and the 4th in the Philippines, Decena said, adding that hog farming in the province is also a booming P6 million industry which is the source of livelihood of most rural backyard raisers, especially in this time.
Meanwhile, PVO records showed that the top swine populations in the province are in Bago City, Kabankalan City, San Carlos City, Cadiz City, Sagay City, Cauayan, Murcia, Victorias City, Himamaylan City, and Isabela.
The turnover rites was led by Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, and Decena.*