Filipino livestock raisers told not to be afraid of regional economic integration

The Philippine government encouraged Monday Filipino livestock raisers and stakeholders to see the regional economic integration as an opportunity and challenge, and not as a threat to the sector.

The free movement of goods and services in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) fuels the need to lower cost, propagate value- adding techniques, and pull stakeholders together to make the Philippine livestock sector competitive versus other ASEAN countries, said Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Proceso Alcala.

"With the Philippines being free from trans-boundary animal diseases such as FMD (foot and mouth disease) and zoonotic diseases such as HPAI, the country remains an attractive trading partner, and exporter of processed meat products," he said.

The DA is open to providing the needed assistance to ensure food safety and that local products meet international standards, so as to enable entrepreneurs not only to enter, but also to flourish in the global stage.

Alcala urged livestock industry stakeholders to follow government regulations and work with responsible agencies in making production more cost-efficient and in making local products more marketable. Endi