The Department of Agriculture (DA) has vaccinated nearly 500,000 pigs against the African Swine Fever (ASF), marking a major milestone in the seven‑year push to rebuild the country’s hog sector and stabilize local pork supply for consumers.
On Sunday, the DA reported that 65 percent of areas previously hit by ASF have recovered, even though active infections remain in 236 barangays across 23 provinces as of October 22. The government administered 499,008 of the available 500,000 ASF vaccine doses from 2024 through the first half of 2026, hitting a 99.8 percent utilization rate under the national vaccination program.
Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) director Christian Daquigan said the vaccination drive covered 54 farms in seven provinces, including 29 commercial farms, 13 semi‑commercial operations, 11 smallholder facilities, and one government‑run farm. Tarlac recorded the highest number of vaccinated pigs at 287,620, followed by Batangas with 92,021 and Bulacan with 88,107. Rizal, Laguna, Quezon, and Pampanga were also included in the campaign.
The vaccination effort received a key boost on August 27, when the BAI registered Vietnam‑made AVAC ASF Live Vaccine for commercial use in the Philippines, adding another layer of defense alongside existing disease prevention protocols.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. emphasized that authorities need to speed up vaccination and expand coverage to make the government’s hog repopulation program successful. The goal is not only to contain ASF, but also to restore the swine population back to the roughly 13 million heads recorded in 2019 before the ASF outbreak devastated local farms. While the hog industry has shown signs of growth in recent months, the country’s swine population is still well below that pre‑disease level.
The DA is also prioritizing backyard hog raisers through its Community Animal Biosecurity Interventions (CABI) program, which was first piloted in President Roxas, North Cotabato in 2022. The program has since expanded to Solsona, Ilocos Norte, and Bais City, Negros Oriental, with ongoing implementation in Mulanay, Quezon. Across four sites covering 14 barangays and 258 backyard farmers, CABI delivers biosecurity training and start‑up materials to help small‑scale raisers prevent ASF outbreaks.
Complementing CABI, the Animal Biosecurity Champions Training program is being scaled up this year, targeting 14 municipalities in Ilocos Norte, Albay, and Cagayan. Trained farmers will share disease‑prevention best practices with neighboring communities to strengthen biosecurity at the grassroots level.
To support farmers hit by ASF, the DA has distributed P49.824 million in indemnification aid to affected hog raisers across eight regions.
Sustained recovery will depend on faster vaccination, stronger farm biosecurity, and wider participation in repopulation, according to Tiu Laurel Jr. These combined efforts aim to revive farmer livelihoods, rebuild domestic swine production, and cut the nation’s dependence on imported pork, which could help steady local pork prices for Filipino consumers in the long run.
