The total volume of meat imports in the country surged by 25.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025 due to higher demand for pork and chicken imports, the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) reported.
Data from the BAI released on Tuesday showed that total meat imports in the January to March quarter this year rose to 344.59 million kilograms from 273.64 million kg imported in the same period in 2024.
Pork made up the bulk of the imports this first quarter at 70.45 million kg, or 53.2 percent of all meat that entered the country during the period. This volume represented a 42.5 percent increase from 128.5 million kg recorded a year earlier.
Chicken followed, with 111.36 million kg, or 32.3 percent of all imported meat in the first quarter. Chicken imports from January to March this year, increased by 14.8 percent from 97.03 million kg a year earlier.
The BAI report also showed that beef imports in the first quarter of 2025 stood at 43.9 million kg, or 12.7 percent of all meat imports in the period. The volume was 24.2 percent more than the 35.32 million kg of beef imports in the first quarter of 2024.
The figures were down for buffalo and turkey. The Philippines imported 5.9 million kg of buffalo from January to March of 2025, a 51.8 percent slump from the 12.32 million kg imported in the first quarter of 2024, while turkey imports also plummeted by 82.4 percent to 54,088 kg from 307,835 kg.
Meanwhile, lamb imports in the first quarter of 2025 reached 154,419 kg, a 26.1 percent jump from the 122,483 kg imported a year earlier.
Duck meat imports fell to 18,544 kg, down by 44.4 percent from 33,375 kg.
Earlier, Jess Cham, president emeritus of the Meat Importers and Traders Association, said the country would continue to rely mainly on meat imports, especially for pork, unless local producers find ways to recover their production levels amid the threat of the African swine fever.
Based on data from the Department of Agriculture’s Bantay Presyo in select markets in Metro Manila, as of Tuesday, prevailing prices of pork ham ranged from P365 to P400 per kg; pork belly from P390 to P470 per kg; frozen kasim, from P225 to P300 per kg; frozen liempo, from P290 to P350; whole dressed chicken from P175 to P240 per kg; beef rump from P420 to P510 per kg and beef brisket from P320 to P460 per kg.
