Consumers should expect an increase in the price of pork meat at public markets in Catanduanes following the provincial government’s temporary ban on shipments of hogs from mainland Bicol due to rising cases of African Swine Fever (ASF).
Already, local hog raisers have decided to hike the selling price of their animals on a live-weight basis to P180 per kilo, up by P25 from last week’s P155.
While the price of pork meat was still P300 per kilo as of Thursday last week, a meat vendor at the Virac public market said an increase in price is inevitable as the supply is expected to dwindle during the ban.
Both the Provincial Agriculture Support Office and the Provincial Veterinary Office, however, assured that the present swine inventory in the island, based on data submitted by the local government units, will last for three (3) months.
Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Ramil I. Evangelista disclosed during the meeting of the Provincial ASF Task Force last Aug. 20, 2026 that somewhere between 2,000 to 4,000 heads of swine are slaughtered in Catanduanes every month.
The number does not include those slaughtered outside the LGU-run abattoirs and thus are unregistered.
Evangelista said that based on the per capital consumption of pork of 15 kilos per year, the present swine inventory would be good for two to three monthd.
Official data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that swine production in the province has been on the decline since 2024 when local hog raisers produced a total of 2,002 metric tons in live weight or 26,477 heads.
The ASF outbreak the following year sharply reduced the swine population to 1,388 metric tons or 19,597 heads.
During the campaign to eliminate ASF, a total of 371 hogs were depopulated in 29 barangays in the towns of Baras, Bato, Virac, Viga, Panganiban and Gigmoto.
The 88 hog raisers have yet to be compensated for the loss of their animals, with the Department of Agriculture regional field office still holding the P2,924,000.00 funding allocated for the affected farmers,
Last Aug. 19, Governor Patrick Alain T. Azanza issued Executive Order No. 59, series of 2026, declaring a temporary ban on the entry of live hogs, pork and all pork by-products into the province.
The ban was instituted after the DA confirmed ASF cases in Iriga City, Naga City and Nabua, all in Camarines Sur, with the governor citing the urgent need to institute safety measures to protect the interest and general welfare of the people, including the livestock industry.
The ASF task forces at all levels were activated and mobilized to monitor the hog population in all barangays for signs and symptoms of ASF, as well as unusual deaths of hogs, and immediately report such incidents to the veterinary office for validation and collection of specimens for laboratory testing and disease confirmation.
The EO directs LGUs, in coordination with the PVO, Philippine Coast Guard and Philippine National Police, to establish animal quarantine checkpoints to monitor and inspect all shipments of live pigs, pork and pork by-products, and to confiscate those brought into the province to be returned to the port of origin.
Viajeros caught unaware of the ban
First to be caught by the ban was a shipment of 19 hogs owned by Ofelia Alfon of Bislig, San Andres which was brought aboard a motorized banca from Camarines Sur in the afternoon of Aug. 19.
With San Andres Mayor Aly T. Romano issuing a similar ban, the swine were kept in quarantine in the coastal village pending the decision of the Provincial African Swine Fever Task Force (PASTF) that convened in the afternoon of Aug. 20.
The shipment was covered by approved transport permits valid for seven days from issuance and laboratory results showing the hogs were negative for ASF.
The task force initially considered a “humane” solution to the quandary faced by the shipper who may not have been aware that a ban was already in effect when the motorized banca carrying the hogs left port in the mainland Bicol.
The group favored keeping the hogs in quarantine in the coastal village pending the taking of blood samples from all the animals and sending it for testing at the Department of Agriculture’s Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (DA-RADDL), with the results released by Monday afternoon.
If the samples tested negative, the hogs could be released for slaughter but if they test positive for ASF, they would be disposed of immediately, with the area as well as the personnel and vessel subjected to disinfection.
It was acknowledged during the meeting that the order may not have been adequately disseminated to stakeholders, particularly to the ports of origin as well as “viajeros” or hog traders who have been issued approved permits to transport prior to the issuance of the EO.
The public learned of the order at 7 AM of Aug. 19 through a social media post of the governor, with the hard copy released by his office an hour later.
News about the ban was posted on the Capitol’s socmed page at 12 noon, with the EO received by coastal barangays at 3 PM, when the 19-hog shipment was already on shore, with the crew submitting legitimate documents including negative test results for ASF.
The task force did away with its initial decision after learning that both the governor and San Andres Mayor Aly T. Romano, who also issued a separate EO on the matter, stood firm on returning the hogs to its place origin.
Shippers tampering lab results?
An official of the DA-RADDL told the task force that it would be easy to contain animal diseases in Catanduanes due to its being an island as long as all live hogs entering the province should have negative lab tests instead of the usual 30 samples for every 100 hogs.
It would be preferable to have ASF testing facility at the port of entry, Veterinary IV Dr. Rona Pineda said in appreciating the PLGU’s decision to require acceptance of any live shipment from the mainland before it is loaded on vessels.
The DA official bared that some unscrupulous shippers are faking or tampering with laboratory test results.
On the other hand, she urged LGUs still in the ASF “red zone” – Bato, Baras, Gigmoto, Panganiban and Viga – to redouble efforts to have the classification lifted.
Those in the red zone are still considered infected despite the fact that more than 90 days have passed since the last case of infection.
The towns need to allow the PVO to take blood samples from 49 hogs in 15 barangays and submit the same for testing at DA-RADDL before the latter could certify that the five towns are in the “pink” zone.
Lack of vehicle, personnel at PVO
Dr. Evangelista also lamented that his office lacks a vehicle and personnel to effectively perform its functions especially during the ban.
He said they have been using their personal tricycles and motorcycles while the previous year’s budget of P2.5 million for the management of ASF and other animal diseases were removed from the 2026 allocation for PVO.
There are only two quarantine officers deployed in Bislig where most shipments are unloaded and they cannot monitor the area on a 24/7 basis, he added.
The PVO has reportedly requested testing equipment to check on health status of swine in the field but the same has yet to be granted.
Andrew Facundo of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office suggested that appropriate resolutions be passed by the task force for the deployment of a vehicle to the PVO as well as testing equipment that could be charged to the Calamity Fund.
On the other hand, Provincial Agriculturist Ace William Tria said an option is to strengthen the local livestock industry by setting farmgate prices for local raisers and price ceilings to protect consumers.
Smuggling of hogs could bring in ASF
The inability of authorities to monitor the western coastline of Catanduanes could allow infected swine to enter the island.
This was admitted by a PCG official who claimed that some shippers unload their live hogs outside Bislig and Cabcab where about five shipments of swine on board motorized bancas regularly arrive from Sangay and Caramoan in Camarines Sur on a weekly basis before the ban.
Pork prices could rise to 2025 levels
If this happens and ASF decimates hog populations in backyard farms in the province, the price of pork at the Virac public market could return to P380 per kilo recorded in March 2025 as meat dealers scrambled for the limited supply of live pigs.
Meat dealers at the capital town told the Tribune at that time that, compared to the “normal” live weight price of P160 to P180, whole pigs were sold at a high P230-240 per kilo.
While the difference of P140 per kilo compared with the price of pork, they alleged that they lose about 20 kilos out of every pig slaughtered, leaving them with just a profit margin of P120 per kilo.
This, in turn, could lead to price increases in chicken and cheaper fish such as “bangus” and tilapia.
Among the most affected by the sharp increase in pork price last year were carinderias and restaurants, most of which chose to either offer smaller servings or raise prices.