By Dolly Yasa
BACOLOD City – Negros Occidental Provincial Administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz said Thursday that local hog raisers have found the Metro Manila market for hog supply promising.
Diaz told reporters that the price of live pigs supplied to Metro Manila has gone higher.
“Our hog raisers are happy about it,” he added.
But he lamented that until now, Cebu governor Gwen Garcia has not replied to the letter-appeal of Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson.
Earlier, Lacson wrote Garcia to lift the ban on live pork and pork products entering Cebu.
Lacson said hog raisers from the province decided to market live pigs in Metro Manila instead of Leyte due to the Cebu ban.
“The price of live hogs in Metro Manila is cheaper by P20 per kilo, compared to provinces in Visayas where they are usually sold,” he added.
But Lacson said selling hogs to Luzon is better than pursuing the market in Leyte because it would cost more as they need to travel a longer route.
But Diaz said hog raises are still trying to pursue the market in Leyte and are hoping that the ban will be lifted.
He added that the hog raisers are happy with the market since the purchasing price has gone up compared to when they started diverting hog supply from Leyte to Manila.
“While the hog raisers lost the Visayas market, they have found a more promising market in Luzon,” Diaz said.
He said hog raisers have enough supply for Metro Manila as well as the province due to the program of the provincial government to ensure food security.
“There is nothing to worry about,” Diaz said.
