Don’t patronize online sellers of pork products, Negrenses told

BACOLOD CITY—The Negros Occidental provincial government has urged Negrenses not to patronize online sellers of pork products, reminding them the ban on the entry of hogs and related food items remained in place.

While pork products being sold online are cheaper than those in the local markets, it could not be verified where they came from and if they underwent meat inspection, stressed Provincial Veterinarian Placeda Lemana.

“It is dangerous for such pork products to be brought into Negros Occidental that is just recovering from African swine fever (ASF) as they could be contaminated and trigger a resurgence of cases,” Lemana said.

Last year, about 18,000 pigs in Negros Occidental died from ASF and other diseases, prompting the provincial government to take several measures to halt the spread of the disease that has affected its multimillion-peso hog industry, including a ban on the entry of live pigs and pork products into the province from ASF-affected areas.

Adequate supply

Lemana said the province was just recovering and hog farmers were still checking if it would already be safe to restock. However, some areas in San Enrique and Valladolid towns that had high pig deaths last year have been determined to be safe from the virus and have started repopulating pigs, she added.

According to Lemana, Negros Occidental still has adequate pork supply, despite the loss of domestically grown hogs to ASF, noting that in Don Salvador Benedicto town and Bago City, pork was still being sold within the range of P270-P280 and P380-P390 a kilo, respectively.

Bacolod City, which is politically independent from Negros Occidental, has already lifted its ban on the entry of pig and pork products into the city.

However, Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has issued an executive order that still bans the entry into the province of all pigs, boar semen and pork products from areas with reported cases of ASF in order to protect and enable the hog industry of the province to recover.

READ: Ilocos Norte cracks down on smuggled pork sold online

Lacson’s order released on Feb. 26 stressed the prohibition on the entry into Negros Occidental of pigs, boar semen and pork products from Bacolod City, Negros Oriental, Luzon, Mindanao, Eastern Visayas, Panay Island, Guimaras Island, Cebu province, Camotes Island, Bantayan Island and even other countries affected with ASF as declared by the Department of Agriculture.

Exempted from the ban are processed pork products that are fully cooked such as ham, sausages, hotdogs, canned goods, pork chicharron, pork-based seasonings and the like, provided they are sourced from meat establishments with certificates of compliance to the ASF Public-Private Audit. INQ