The Department of Agriculture (DA) Ilocos regional office has prepared a rehabilitation plan to help affected backyard hog raisers in Pangasinan towns, whose pigs were culled as part of the protocol against African swine fever (ASF).

Erlinda Manipon, Regional Technical Director for Operations of DA-1, said aside from the indemnification fund amounting to PHP5,000 per head of culled pigs, the backyard hog raisers in the two towns will be given either three cows or 13 free-ranged chickens.

“Initially, there are 279 hog raisers from Mapandan and Bayambang whose swines were the first affected by ASF in the province last year,” she said in an interview Thursday.

The DA-1, she said, is in the process of procuring some 699 heads of cow worth PHP25.9 million and 3,664 heads of free-ranged chicken worth PHP1.83 million, as part of their rehabilitation plan.

“Those who will be given cows should have a pasture or a place where they could get grass to feed the cows because if not, the animal might die; while for the chicken, they will be given 11 hens which are ready to breed and two roosters to ensure they will multiply,” she added.

Manipon said DA-1 will also train the beneficiaries on how to raise cows and chickens.

The aid is expected to be distributed within the first quarter of this year.

She said the DA also offers loan assistance to the affected hog raisers.

“They may avail a loan worth PHP30,000 without interest and payable in three years. But so far, none of the affected hog raisers have availed of this,” she added.

Meanwhile, the DA-1 continues with monitoring and validation for the indemnification, which will come from DA central office.

Hogs from two barangays in Mapandan and Bayambang towns have yielded positive results in ASF last year, but it was contained before the year 2019 ended.

Last week, pigs from Barangay Linoc in Binmaley and Barangay Apaya in Malasiqui, however, resulted positive in the ASF test. (PNA)