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The supply of swine meat in wet markets all over Western Visayas has dropped to alarming levels, the outcome of which is the high prices of pork, to the consternation of consumers.
Johnny Loces, chief of livestock sector of the Department of Agriculture in Region 6, said that for the last three years, many backyard hog producers in the region have ceased to raise hogs mainly because of soaring costs of commercial feeds, allowing them small profit margins and, thus, they opted to close shop rather than to suffer more losses.
Backyard raising used to account for about 80-89 percent of pork sold in the region, and figures logged at DA R6 shows that for 2012, there were 1.3 million hogs raised, of which 1.1 million came from backyard purveyors.
Western Visayas is the third biggest source of pigs in the country, which translates to a whooping 179 percent sufficient level supply for its six provinces.
Wednesday April 17, 2013/ Visayan Daily Star/ Philippines.
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