Negros Occidental hog raisers seek P170 price floor

BACOLOD CITY— Hog raisers in Negros Occidental are seeking a minimum liveweight price of P160 to P170 per kilo as African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks drive farmgate prices below production costs.

Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said Thursday that the provincial government is studying whether it has the legal authority to impose a price floor to protect local swine producers.

Ric Lauron, president of Alliance of Hog Raisers Association of Negros Occidental (AHRANO) welcomed the initiative on Friday, saying ASF outbreaks had driven liveweight farmgate prices down to P110 to P120 per kilo. Prices in some areas were slightly higher at P125 to P130 per kilo.

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Lauron said hog raisers need to receive at least P140 to P150 per kilo just to break even.

To help stabilize the local swine industry, AHRANO proposed the following minimum prices:

Liveweight: P160 to P170 per kiloCarcass: P200 per kiloRetail pork: P260 to P270 per kilo

Meanwhile, Talisay City Mayor Rowena Lizares has issued an executive order setting minimum prices for pork sold in the city to help protect local hog raisers from the continuing effects of ASF.

Lizares signed Executive Order No. 39, Series of 2026, which took effect on July 24, according to an announcement posted on the Talisay City government’s Facebook page on Friday.

The order sets the minimum prices at P170 per kilo for liveweight or farmgate buying, P240 per kilo for pisada or carcass, and P270 per kilo for retail pork.

It requires meat retailers, vendors, market stall owners and other pork sellers in Talisay to comply with the prescribed rates.

The City Agriculture Office, City Veterinary Office, City Economic Enterprise and Public Market Management Office, Business Permits and Licensing Office, and other concerned agencies were tasked with monitoring and enforcing compliance.

The city government said the policy aims to prevent unfair price-cutting, protect the livelihoods of hog raisers and meat vendors, and ensure consumers continue to have access to safe and quality pork.

Lizares said the pricing guidelines would be periodically reviewed in consultation with industry stakeholders to ensure they remain responsive to changing market conditions. /das