DA opens state-of-the-art pig husbandry center

LIPA, Batangas – Small-scale pig producers as well as investors venturing into the lucrative P126-billion hog industry can learn all they need to know about how to succeed in this business with hands-on training at the state-of-the-art pig husbandry and boar artificial insemination (AI) center of the Agricultural Training Institute-International Training Center for Pig Husbandry (ATI-ITCPH).

The ATI-ITCPH seven-hectare facility opened recently a P15.6-million, 60-sow level farm and 10-board AI center. It was an expansion of existing facilities that have trained thousands on all production aspects of both backyard and commercial pig raising.

The techno-demo and training farm, financed through the Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, consists of model pig farm equipment, including tunnel ventilation, temperature-controlled housing facility for a 30 to 60-sow farm, a dry and pregnant unit, one farrowing unit, one nursery unit, four finishing units and an upgraded AI processing center.

Alexander C. Castillo, director of the ITCPH, said the farm’s clients — farmers, farmer-leaders, agricultural teachers and students , trainers, small and medium-scale pig farmers, veterinarians, animal feed/drug technical personnel, livestock technicians and extensionists of local government units (LGUs) — will be the ones largely benefiting from the various training courses offered by the center.

"We teach scientific pig farming here. Our aim is to contribute in the genetic improvement of pigs that could raise the productivity of the hog industry. Since we now have an expanded facility, we also expect to increase the number of our tailor-made courses as well as the regular courses on pig husbandry, swine management, animal waste management, artificial insemination and meat processing."

Castillo added the ITCPH’s courses are market-oriented with private and tailor-made courses accounting for 24 percent of its total trainings conducted last year, including those requested by private companies in allied industries.

"Our facilities provide trainees modern and efficient technology. Laboratory and farm visits, which are not possible in most commercial pig farms, will be facilitated, students will see actual AI operations and pig farms on a commercial scale. Our approach is wholistic, we also incorporate environmentally-safe farm practices in our courses."

Another important feature of the facility is the 10-board AI center. Aside from making high-quality boar semen available to pig producers, the center teaches its clients various aspects of AI.

"The idea is to spread the commercialization of AI services by training clients, especially those with their own boars, to maximize the production of semen and sell these to farmers and other users that cannot afford to buy top-quality and prolific boars,"said Castillo, adding that in Batangas a yearly boar auction is held with a top of the line boar selling for more than P150,000.

Right now, LGUs without AI centers buy their boar semen requirements from ITCPH, along with local farmers stretching from Bulacan, Kalinga-Apayao, Mindoro, Camarines Sur, Rizal and other Southern Tagalog provinces purchasing boar semen here.

"Good quality semen supply is important to come up with equally-good finishers and allow the hog industry to continue expanding and growing at a pace that will meet consumer demand and later, produce meat products for the global market," said Castillo.

Today, there are 10 artificial breeding centers in this province with about 44 breeding boars. These centers can sell about 30,113 does of extended semen per year, which is not even adequate for the province’s own requirements or this year alone, the estimated semen dose requirement of Batangas alone is 72,800 and is projected to increase to 99,136 by 2011.With the center’s additional 10 boars, it can fill about 42 percent of the demand.

Gradually, the center hopes to increase the number of its boar so that it could further commercialize semen sale. The center is selling a single-dose semen for P180 which can be used to artificially inseminate 200 sows. Its prices are very competitive compared to private companies‚ selling price of P400 per dose, but this is already inclusive of AI services.

"We are cheaper because we only sell the semen, we do not provide AI services because we teach our clients here at the center how to do AI by themselves. We are not only selling, but teaching them AI technology as well," explained ITCPH assistant director Gabriel S. Katigbak.

Katigbak added that the commercialization of the AI boar semen will increase with the additional boars in the center. He said a study was conducted last year to identify possible market outlets for ITCPH’s processed semen. The study included major-pig producing areas of Lipa City, Tanauan, Padre Garcia, Rosario, Taysan, Ibaan, San Jose, Mataas na Kahoy and Cuenca.