KOTA KINABALU: The price of live pigs in Sabah will be cheaper by 10 percent to 15 percent soon, says Deputy Agriculture and Food Security Minister Chan Foong Hin.

The deputy minister praised pig farmers for taking the initiative to lower the price through the Sabah Poultry & Livestock Farming Association.

“The Sabah Poultry & Livestock Farming Association informed me that the farmers had decided to lower the price between 10 percent and 15 percent,” said Chan.

“Price of pork in the east coast of Sabah, where Sandakan and Tawau are located, will be reduced from RM21 to RM18.50 per kg, while live pigs in the west coast will be lowered from RM21 to RM18 per kg,” he said.

The price revision reflects the pig farmers’ efforts in combating AFS (African Swine Fever) during the past 18 months, and they have since resumed production.

“As long as the farmers are able to increase pork production, consumers will continue to buy pork at reasonable prices.

“I believe the initiative to lower pork prices is good for consumers, as they can buy fresh pork at lower prices,” he said.

Chan, who is also the Kota Kinabalu Member of Parliament, said in a statement that pig farmers in Sabah had been affected by the ASF outbreak since February 2021, leading to the shortage of pork supply and spikes in pork prices earlier.

He said the Pig Farming Area (PFA) in Tongod is under way. Once PFA starts operation, pork production will increase and this will help lower the price of pork further.

Chan thanked the pig farmers for their cooperation during the ASF outbreak, where they complied with the directive and prevention measures issued by the Sabah Veterinary Department, so that the state did not detect fresh ASF cases.