The Philippines is seen to experience improved local production of beef, pork and chicken this year as the economy widens further, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
In a report dated April 10, local beef production this year is seen to hit 185,000 metric tons, up 1 percent from last year’s 183,000 MT because of the limited expansion of the commercial sector.
The agency cited data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showing cattle commercial sector inventory accounts for only 2 percent while the cattle backyard sector has 98 percent.
Domestic beef consumption were to rise to 444,000 MT from last year’s 438,000 MT as the economy opens further and the population rises, with fresh beef catering more to the affluent segment while canned beef are more for the lower income segment.
As local beef production and consumption rise, beef imports this year were also seen reaching 260,000 MT, up 1.6 percent from last year’s 256,000 MT.
The same USDA report also mentioned that pork production this year were seen at 975,000 MT or 5.4 percent higher than last year’s 925,000 MT but 2.5 percent lower than 2021’s 1 million MT because of a resurgence of African swine fever (ASF) that plague Luzon and Mindanao.
The recent ASF outbreaks in Cebu province which is a major supplier of pork to Metro Manila, and outbreaks of the same disease at the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, limit this year’s potential pork production.
The USDA projects local pork consumption to be only slightly higher at 1.49 million MT from last year’s 1.48 million, with imports seen falling by 6.25 percent to 525,000 MT from 560,000 MT because of more expensive prices of pork in the international market.
The report said chicken meat production should prove 2.8 percent higher at 1.48 million MT from 2022’s 1.44 million MT as poultry owners take advantage of ASF cases plaguing the local hog sector.
Chicken consumption were seen 3.1 percent higher this year at 1.99 million MT from 1.93 million MT as imports grow by 4.6 percent to 520,000 MT from 497,000 to fill the gap not covered by local production. Imported chicken remains competitively priced in markets around the country.
