July 27, 2024

 

Philippines to roll out ASF vaccine by September

The Philippines' Department of Agriculture (DA) is optimistic that African swine fever (ASF), which has severely impacted the local pork industry since 2019, will be resolved by the end of the year as government plans to start the rollout of ASF vaccines by September, GMA News reported.

 

During the post-State of the Nation Address (SONA) forum in Pasay City, the country's Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr announced that the ASF vaccine has recently been approved for a six-month government use for mass trial.

 

"We will bid this out this August and hopefully by September, we can implement it," Tiu Laurel stated.

 

The DA plans to initially vaccinate swine in ASF red and yellow zones.

 

"With that, we are hopeful that the ASF issue will gradually be resolved. Hopefully by the end of the year, it will be almost gone," he said.

 

In his third SONA, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr confirmed the government's readiness to roll out the ASF vaccines.

 

He said the government is ready to roll out the vaccines against the ASF, which would strengthen our animals and would prevent losses to our farmers.

 

Tiu Laurel mentioned that the DA is currently crafting the terms of reference for the procurement of the ASF vaccines. The procurement will be conducted through open bidding, although "as of the moment there's only one accredited vaccine."

 

During President Marcos' state visit to Vietnam in January, DA officials discussed the availability of the vaccines with their Vietnamese counterparts.

 

In 2023, Vietnam exported two million doses of the ASF vaccine to the Philippines after approving domestic use of the world's first commercial vaccines against the disease.

 

The vaccines to be procured will be used for a six-month mass trial.

 

"After six months of mass trials, if there'll be no problems, it will be good for commercial use," Tiu Laurel said.

 

As of April this year, pork supplied by local farmers declined to 752.95 metric tonnes from 3,114 metric tonnes year-on-year, according to data from the National Meat Inspection Service.

 

-      GMA News