CITY OF MALOLOS—Bulacan officials assured Metro Manila consumers that pork meats coming from the province are safe as they suspect a syndicate wanting to promote imported frozen meats this coming Christmas Season is behind the claim against the locally produced meats.
Gov. Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado who met hog and swine industry members in Bulacan here Wednesday to immediately stop the trading and transporting of dead hogs and pork meats said the recent confiscation of ill meats in some towns in Bulacan only proved that the government is serious in securing the safety of consumers particularly in Metro Manila.
“We are wondering why the issue on botcha is being highlighted every nearing Christmas time. It is a direct attack on the hog industry in Bulacan and a syndicate probably wanting to sell their frozen imported meats in the market could be behind this,” the governor said.
Based on the data from the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), sixty percent of the pork demands of Metro Manila is being filled by hog raisers in the towns of Sta. Maria, Pandi, San Jose del Monte, San Ildefonso, Baliuag and San Miguel.
Charles Ong, from Guiguinto town and vice president of National Federation of Hog Farmers, Inc. said during the meeting that sales of Bulacan pork meats had dropped to twenty percent following recent reports of presence and confiscation of botcha.
Ong said contrary to what is being highlighted in the news, there is only a very minimal 1-3 percent mortality rates among all the close to 1million hogs in the more than 200 commercial and semi- commercial farms in Bulacan and that farm owners have high concerns and efforts to keep within the farms dead pigs to avoid illegal trading by some unscrupulous individuals.
Ong said flu has been a normal case to pigs these times due sudden change in weather this season.
He said the industry is carefully practicing the inceneration of dead hogs, burying them in mortality pits inside the farms or boiling them for consumption to dogs as dog foods as one way of protecting their business.
Ong appeal to all the sectors including the media to observe the angle of syndicate as possibly behind the bombarding of news of presence of botcha in Metro Manila markets as a way to kill the local swine producing industry in the country.
“Ingatan din natin, tingnan natin ang ganitong anggulo, baka gusto lang kaming sirain para ipasok ang imported frozen meats na mas mura kaysa sa fresh na meats natin dito sa atin sa bansa,” he said.
“Those are just isolated case and our police are continuously conducting checkpoints to arrest those unscrupulous individuals who destroy the hog industry in Bulacan and could put in danger the health and safety of the consumers especially in Metro Manila,” Alvarado said.
Last month, Pandi police arrested a resident in the town on the act of roasting, making “lechon” out of the double dead meats, (lechon botcha).
Two weeks ago, San Jose del Monte and region 3 police operatives form camp Olivas, Pampanga confiscated suspected double dead meats and about to expire hogs at a checkpoint they put up at the boundary of San Jose del Monte City and Sta. Maria town.
Police said the ill meats are suspected to be brought to Balaintawak market in Quezon City.
Alvarado said Bulacan markets are zero in botcha because of systematized slaughtering and monitoring of all hogs and pork meats.
He said he wanted Metro Manila markets being supplied of pork meats by hog raisers in Bulacan to also be free and zero in ill meats that’s why he sought the cooperation of the hog raisers to monitor and watch their farms from possible sneaking out of the dead pigs due to fever and flu this colder season.
Vice Governor Daniel Fernando who have initially made talks with huge backyard hog raisers suspect that it is commonly just the care taker of both the commercial and backyard farms who are disposing and selling the dead pigs to illegal botcha trader.
“Karamihan hindi alam ng may ari, kung may nagkasakit na baboy, nilagnat o sinipon, ang utos nito sa care taker ibaon, pero ang ginagawa ng care taker ibinebenta ng illegal, pero meron din siguro na alam mismo ng may ari at maaaring ito pa ang naguutos na ibenta pa rin at pagkakitaan kahit na sa illegal na paraan,” he said.
Fernando said the provincial board of Bulacan is now making a double time effort to amend the Provincial Ordinance on the Rules and Regulations on the Control and Eradication of Foot and Mouth Disease in the Province to increase its current very low P5,000 fine.
Voltaire Basinang, acting Bulacan provincial veterinary officer said the absence of a national law and the low amount of fine to charge the botcha traders allowed those recently arrested and nine others they earlier arrested doing the same illegal business just go home without facing court charges.
According to Basinang, the absence of a national law that would prosecute the persons arrested for double meat violation make an easy business and industry for the double dead meat transporters.
He said unless a tougher law is made, the proliferation of double dead meats may stay especially as scrupulous individuals would still want to benefit from the double dead meats.
Basinang said although Bulacan or this town was not detected or pinpointed as the origin of lechon botcha that was recently confiscated in Balintawak market by Quezon City meats inspection team, hot meats, double dead meats or commonly known as “botcha”, the province is identified by the BAI as one of the seven provinces that are the sources of the said types of meat being sneaked in to Metro Manila.
“Balintawak market sa Quezon City at mga palengke sa Caloocan City ang naging karaniwang nadidiskubreng may mga botcha,” he said.
He said Bulacan markets are always free from botcha because of the close coordination of meat inspectors, market masters and other personnel designated to check the good quality of meats.
He said the receipt to meat owner is only being issued upon delivery of the slaughtered good meat in the market to avoid inclusion and delivery to market of double dead meats that were not cleared by the National Meat Inspection Service.
“Matagal ng sistema ito dito sa Bulacan kaya walang botcha na nakakarating sa palengke kasi halimbawa kung apat lang ang cleared and approved good meat tapos may resibo agad ito na dala, pwedeng samahan o dagdagan ng may ari ng baboy ang bilang ng ulo at katawan nito sa palengke kahit yung hindi dumaan sa meat inspection,” he explained.
Basinang said the lack of coordination of concerned officials in Quezon City and Caloocan City to the Bulacan provincial veterinary office to practice the same stricter monitoring and checking continue to the yield and delivery of double dead meats.