THE Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday led the controlled vaccination of hogs against the African swine fever (ASF), which is also the trial run for the vaccine from Vietnam.

The first rollout of the Vietnam-made ASF AVAC live vaccine kicked off in Lobo, Batangas, where the highest cases of ASF were recorded.

The DA emphasized that the vaccination will involve inoculating only healthy pigs and will be injected with the live but weakened virus.

Through the vaccination, the department aims to help pigs reach 25 weeks and attain 100 kilograms, providing a new approach to tackling the disease.

"We must embrace innovative solutions like this vaccine to improve outcomes for our hog industry," Agriculture Assistant Secretary for Swine and Poultry Constante Palabrica said.

Palabrica added that developing the vaccine against ASF will help prevent the spread of the virus that has resulted in the death of millions of the country's hog population.

"ASF has severely affected both large integrators and backyard farms. While larger farms can invest in biosecurity measures, 60 percent of our hog population in backyard farms struggle with insufficient funding for effective protection," he said.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said that the vaccine against ASF would especially help backyard farms recover and save billions of pesos in investments.

"This effort highlights [the] DA's commitment to safeguard the swine industry and enhance national food security amid the ASF crisis. We're dedicated to [supporting] hog farmers and ensure the sustainability of our agriculture sector," Tiu Laurel said.

The DA has initially allocated P300 million for the procurement of 600,000 ASF vaccines. If the controlled tests prove successful, additional funds will be sourced.

The DA is also exploring additional vaccines for breeders and growers to further support the industry.

Latest data from the Bureau of Animal Industry showed that the number of provinces with active cases of ASF increased to 32 while the affected barangay (villages) rose to 458.

The areas with active cases of the disease rose compared to June, which only had 12 affected provinces and 32 barangay.