Joanne Carla Y.

Jacobo BSA- 1

Drastic action needed to prevent ‘porkocalypse’

BY THE MANILA TIMES
SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

DESPITE months of dire warnings, a lack of attention by government officials and the pork industry has
allowed the African swine fever (ASF) to take hold in the Philippines. If the situation is not addressed as the
critical emergency it now is with aggressive action to halt the disease, it will destroy an entire agricultural
sector.

ASF, as the name implies, originated from Africa, but it has been spreading from China since the early part of
this year. It is completely harmless to humans, but is highly contagious and has a 100-percent fatality rate
among pigs. Pigs can catch the disease by being in contact with infected pigs, their meat or body fluids, or even
places infected pigs have been or objects they have touched. The disease has now spread to every part of the
world, with the worst outbreaks being in China and Europe.

ASF has appeared in Bulacan and Rizal provinces; there have not been many cases so far, which is why
Agriculture Secretary William Dar is hesitant to call the disease an “epidemic,” not an “outbreak,” but that
acknowledgment may just be a matter of time. In an alarming development, there have been several reports of
dead pigs being found in the Marikina and Malolos Rivers; those cannot be the only instances of carelessness on
the part of affected farmers, human nature being what it is, and so it is a near certainty that the disease is already
spreading much farther and faster than the government officials concerned realize.

As of early May this year, China had already culled more than 1 million pigs in an effort to stop the disease
there. Their own agriculture officials admitted that up to 100 million pigs might have to be exterminated this
year to try to control the spread of ASF; the US Department of Agriculture estimated at the time that between
the effects of the disease and efforts to halt its spread, China might lose 134 million animals.

By comparison, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimated there were 12.7 million swine in the
Philippines as of July 1 of this year. Based on the Chinese experience, an uncontrolled outbreak of ASF would
wipe out the entire pig population in this country in about two months.

That obviously cannot be allowed to happen, but so far the government’s response to the grave risk has been
slow. While it is understandable that the Department of Agriculture (DA) does not want to take precipitous
action that would cause an economic crisis for an important food-producing sector, it has become clear that
unless drastic measures are taken, an even bigger crisis will be the result.

On Monday, the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura or Sinag, an influential agriculture lobbying group, called
on the DA to immediately halt the importation of pork and processed pork products. That move should be, as
the saying goes, a “no-brainer.” Imports must be halted to prevent infected pork from entering the country.

Also, the DA should also halt transport of live pigs or pork products between different parts of the country, in
effect, imposing a nationwide quarantine. This will help to prevent the spread of the disease from one area —
such as Luzon, where an outbreak has been confirmed — to others not yet infected.

Finally, severe penalties should be imposed on anyone whose actions put the country at risk, such as smuggling
or improperly disposing of dead animals. These actions have consequences so grave that they amount to
economic sabotage, and they should be treated as such.
FACTS
 ASF or African Swine Flu, as the name implies came from Africa, but it has been spreading
from China since the early part this year.
 ASF is harmless to humans, but is highly contagious and has a 100-percent fatality rate among
pigs.
 Pigs can catch the disease by being in contact with infected pigs, their meat or body fluids, or
even places infected pigs have been or objects they have touched.
 The disease has now spread to every part of the world, with the worst outbreaks being in
China and Europe.
 If ASF is not addressed as the critical emergency it now is with aggressive action to halt the
disease, it will destroy an entire agricultural sector.
 ASF has appeared in Bulacan and Rizal provinces; there have not been many cases so far,
which is why Agriculture Secretary William Dar is hesitant to call the disease an “epidemic,” not
an “outbreak,” but that acknowledgment may just be a matter of time.
 As of early May this year, China had already culled more than 1 million pigs in an effort to stop
the disease there. Their own agriculture officials admitted that up to 100 million pigs might
have to be exterminated this year to try to control the spread of ASF; the US Department of
Agriculture estimated at the time that between the effects of the disease and efforts to halt its
spread, China might lose 134 million animals.
 The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimated there were 12.7 million swine in the
Philippines as of July 1 of this year. Based on the Chinese experience, an uncontrolled
outbreak of ASF would wipe out the entire pig population in this country in about two months.

OPINIONS
 Despite months of dire warnings, a lack of attention by government officials and the pork
industry has allowed the African swine fever (ASF) to take hold in the Philippines.
 The writer states that the government’s response is slow to the grave risk of wipe out of the
entire pig population in 2 months.
 The writer expresses his understanding to the DA who does not want to take precipitous
actions that would cause an economic crisis for an important food-producing sector. However,
unless drastic measures are taken, an even bigger crisis will be the result.
 The writer states that it is a “no-brainer” to the calling of an influential lobbying group to the DA
or Department of Agriculture to halt immediately the importation of pork and processed pork
products.
 Also, the writer suggests to the issue that the DA should also halt transport of live pigs or pork
products between different parts of the country, in effect, imposing a nationwide quarantine.
This will help to prevent the spread of the disease from one area — such as Luzon, where an
outbreak has been confirmed — to others not yet infected.
 They also suggest that severe penalties should be imposed on anyone whose actions put the
country at risk, such as smuggling or improperly disposing of dead animals. These actions
have consequences so grave that they amount to economic sabotage, and they should be
treated as such.
 The final verdict of this article is that ASF should be dealt with urgency, as it would cause a
bigger crisis in the future.