Previously, he was working in an organization in Thailand that operated in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. However, when he was presented with the opportunity to become the director of the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC) Foundation, Inc. in barangay Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, he eagerly embraced the challenge.
Adang had formerly served as an extension worker for the MBRLC before opting to work in Thailand. Together with his family, he prayed about whether to accept the offer, and it turned out to be a decision he has never regretted.
“The call to bring back the center into God’s agenda – that is, to reach the poorest among the poor and help the experience abundant life both physically and spiritually – is a great challenge,” he pointed out, adding that he wanted MBRLC to become a center for agricultural development not only in Mindanao but in other countries in Asia as well.
For one, being the director of MBRLC, it means he gets to return to his birthplace – in barangay Eman which is just 15 minutes away from Kinuskusan. For another, it means reuniting with his beloved mother.
But most importantly, he could manage the farm of his parents and do what he loves most – raising livestock. “I grew up in a rural area and my parents were raising livestock in our backyard,” he recalled.
Pigs come into his mind immediately as the animal to raise in his homeyard. After all, he knows the basics of swine raising. “I considered pigs an asset,” said Adang, who started raising pigs when he was only 12 years old. “In order for me not to spend whatever extra money I have, I raise pigs. Later on, it became my passion because I can sell the pig anytime if and when I need money.”
Swine industry
Filipinos are basically pork eaters. Pork serves as a vital source of protein, calories, minerals, and vitamins. A standard-sized pork chop fulfills 45% of an individual’s daily protein requirements. Pork is also highly digestible, with 97% of meat proteins and 96% of meat fats being absorbed by the body. Despite being higher in fat compared to other meats, the fat found in pork is effectively utilized by the human body.
The country ranks third to China and Vietnam in terms of pig production in Asia, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Other top producers of pigs in the region are Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, India and Malaysia.
Filipinos have been eating pork since time immemorial. “The Philippines, before it was even called the Philippines, has always favored pork,” wrote Gela Velasco, author The History of Meat in the Philippines: Why Our Markets Carry Chicken, Beef and Pork but Not Horse or Crocodile.
“Pig meat was often raised as offerings to the gods to curry their favor. Pigs are also considered indigenous to our lands, with the Tagalog word baboy also having variations in the Indonesian babi and bawi in Malayan. The existence of these similar words in neighboring countries is important because they confirm that pig was a pre-colonial food source in Southeast Asia.”
In recent years, there is a growing demand and increased preference for processed foods among Filipino consumers, including those from pork.
According to Adang, swine raising is a highly popular enterprise in nearly every rural household in the country. Most (71%) of the swine are raised in the backyards. A backyard farm raises 1-20 finishers with no piglets, or 1-40 piglets or 1-10 sows with 1-21 piglets.
The decision to raise pigs independently stemmed from his expanding family. Additionally, he requires extra income to cover their daily expenses. In his absence, it is his wife and children who will oversee the piggery. As the director of MBRLC, his role also requires him to travel internationally.
“I started with four to five pigs, which he helped to fatten,” he stated. “I refrained from raising multiple pigs initially because I was uncertain of the outcome. I needed to grasp the fundamentals.”
He acquired his initial stock from various sources, primarily from his neighbors. “However, I chose aesthetically pleasing stock and subsequently improved them through hybrid breeding,” Adang remarked. “I also experimented with artificial insemination.”
Raising pigs was not unfamiliar to him. He completed his studies at the University of Southern Mindanao in Kabacan, North Cotabato in 1995, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture. While his major focused on agronomy, he also pursued a minor in animal science.
Upon being employed as an extension worker for the MBRLC, he acquired fundamental knowledge about livestock management, which included goats and pigs. “Even though I later worked overseas, I continued to expand my understanding of animal husbandry,” he said.
African swine fever
After that, it was business as usual for him. He began to increase his pig farming due to the high demand. However, this nearly came to a halt when the African swine fever (ASF) – a highly contagious and severe hemorrhagic disease affecting pigs, which manifests a variety of clinical symptoms and lesions – struck the country. Bansalan was among the areas impacted by it.
In contrast to others who ceased pig farming, his situation was quite different. “It was truly a blessing from God that my small backyard pig project remained unaffected by ASF,” he remarked, further stating, “I simply took the necessary precautions to avert ASF.”
Although his farm was not affected by ASF virus, he “slowed down due to some restrictions but continued raising pigs on a small-scale basis.”
Once the ASF was over, he raised 30 fatteners and 5 sows. “When I started raising pigs, I only raised pigs for fattening purposes and kept buying piglets from other sources, but lately, I decided to raise sows, too, for piglet production. Now, I am planning to expand due to high demands of piglets.”
Breeding and feeding
The sows that he raises are bred in two distinct manners. The first method is natural breeding. He has one boar that he primarily utilizes for breeding purposes. “I raise my own boar to be prepared in case ASF occurs again. If that situation arises, there will be travel restrictions and certain policies will be reinstated to prevent the spread of the ASF virus,” Adang elaborated.
In instances where the sow is related to the boar, he employs artificial insemination for his swine. On average, his sows produce 10-12 piglets with each breeding.
Feed constitutes almost 80% of the production cost in swine raising. “For this reason, it is highly important that economical as well as nutritionally balanced diets are provided during all phases of the life cycle,” wrote W.G. Pond and J.H. Maner, authors of Swine Production in Temperate and Tropical Environments.
Adang knows this well, so he gives different feeds, which he buys at the MBRLC, for his pigs. “I use booster, hog pre-starter, starter, grower, and finisher feeds for my fattening stock,” he stated. “For my sows, I provide hog mash, gestating, and lactating feeds. For my boar, I feed him hog mash.”
Aside from commercial feeds, he also gives his pigs feed concentrate, leaves of leguminous plants and “madre de agua” (Trichanthera gigantea).
Among the problems he encountered in raising pigs include slow growth rate (“because of breeding history”), parasites, market price (“flexible”), and feeds (“price of feeds gets higher while the live weight price gets lower”).
To make pig raising profitable, Adang suggested: “At least a minimum of 10 heads of fattening pig per batch.”
Farmers should not only be good in livestock management but in marketing as well. Adang shares his winning strategy: When the price of live weight is elevated, he opts to sell his pigs live. Conversely, when the price decreases, he takes it upon himself to butcher the pigs and sell the pork to local customers.
Farm management
“My swine raising project doesn’t interfere with my work at MBRLC,” he admitted. “I hired one person to work in my pig and chicken farm, then I let my wife manage the project. I just monitor the project every evening and give instructions to my wife and worker if needed. Usually, I prepare a simple program of activities for them to follow every day. I use my free time on the farm just to unwind myself from the office work.”
Due to his implementation of organic farming techniques, the majority of farm operations are straightforward and easily manageable. “Every early morning, my worker cleans the pen and the wallowing area,” he said. “He feeds the pigs three times daily with various leguminous plants. He also oversees my other backyard projects.”
In addition to pigs, he also raises native chickens for personal use. Occasionally, he sells chickens to interested parties. Furthermore, he cultivates agricultural crops to supplement his income. The crops grown on the farm include coconuts, rubber trees, durian, rambutan, and lanzones. He also plants forest trees along the perimeters of his farm.
Adang genuinely embodies the principles he advocates. Occasionally, when farmers participating in training at the MBRLC ask for a lecture on swine raising, he personally conducts the session. He possesses not only the knowledge of the methods and facts but also the understanding of the reasons and contexts.
“I am very much aware that many of our farmers are raising swine in their backyards, and it is beneficial to learn the techniques for raising them effectively and profitably,” he pointed out.
