PORK SHIPMENTS from the UK are expected to be sustained for the rest of the year as the Philippines struggles to contain its outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF), the British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (BCCP) said.
BCCP Executive Director and Trustee Chris Nelson said that pork shipments from the UK grew 16% in the first five months.
“We would like to sustain that and hopefully continue to grow it even more. Obviously, as the volume goes up, the base gets higher, but yes, we can see it being sustained,” Mr. Nelson told BusinessWorld by phone on Thursday.
“The pig herds in the Philippines have been significantly impacted by ASF, and that’s had a significant impact on supply, and UK pork obviously is of good quality and controlled,” he added.
“Second, I think that the work that we have done with the (UK) Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has resulted in lasting business relations with importers,” he said.
As of Aug. 8, 62 municipalities across 22 provinces had active ASF cases, according to the Bureau of Animal Industry.
ASF was first detected in the Philippines in 2019.
Between July 31 and Aug. 3, the AHDB and six UK exporters operated the British Meat Pavilion at the World Food Expo in Manila.
The BCCP and the AHDB also hosted a business-to-business seminar attended by 50 importers and distributors.
Imports are “helping with food supply and inflation,” he said.
To further grow trade, Mr. Nelson said that the BCCP will continue to work with AHDB, particularly on the temporary ban on beef.
“We will also continue to strengthen long-term business relationships with Philippine companies, as this is mutually beneficial to both countries,” he added. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
