Philippine pork prices set to rise in coming months

“It is the start of the ‘ber’ months, so naturally more people will be buying local pork again,” said Propork President Eric Harina said in a radio interview. “We expect farm prices to go up.”

Despite the relatively low current farm prices, retail prices are already ranging between USD 5.89 and USD 380 per kilo. He attributed this to the discrepancy to weak production and ongoing challenges from ASF, which continues to affect the local swine industry.

Rainy season and ASF stall recovery

Mr Harina explained the pig health usually declines during the rainy months of July and August, further slowing down production.

The national hog inventory saw only a slight increase—from 8.7 million heads in 2024 to 8.8 million this year—underscoring the sector’s slow recovery.

“Production is weak,” said Mr Harina, noting that the industry is still waiting for the commercial availability of the ASF vaccine.

Local vs imported: A price tug-of-war

Local producers are also facing stiff competition from imported pork, which retails between USD 4.29 and USD 5.36 per kg. This is much lower than local pork.

Mr Harina pointed out that demand for local pork has declined as consumers turn to imports.

“We’ve noticed that our sales are slow because imported pork is cheaper,” he said.

To support local producers and improve price transparency, Mr Harina recommended streamlining the supply chain. This can be done by removing middlemen and strengthening direct farm-to-retailer systems.