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Benchmarking the Philippine Livestock, Poultry, and Dairy Industries


The Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) held a public webinar on December 15, 2022, from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM via Zoom.

This virtual event featured two PIDS studies on the domestic and international benchmarking of the Philippine livestock, poultry, and dairy industries.

Authored by PIDS Senior Research Fellow Sonny N. Domingo, former Supervising Research Specialist Maureen Ane D. Rosellon, Senior Research Specialist Pauline Joy M. Lorenzo, and Research Specialist Arvie Joy A. Manejar, the first study titled “Domestic Benchmarking of the Philippine Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Industries” looks into these private sector-led industries and how they can transform and flourish. In 2019, the production volume and value, inventory, and consumption of swine and poultry decreased. Meanwhile, the dairy industry maintained its increasing production, but locally-consumed milk is almost entirely imported. The bulk of local production in these industries is largely sourced from backyard operations, despite the cost advantage of commercial operations owing to economies of scale. The study emphasizes that backyard producers and smallholder growers, who comprise the bulk of local production, stand to gain from the consolidation of farmer organizations, capacity building, technology transfer, and policy changes, as the government renews interest in these industries after the onset of COVID-19 pandemic and the African Swine Fever. The study also proposes strategies to help these industries become resilient to shocks, apply economies of scale in operations, and stay competitive against foreign-produced meat and milk for long-term growth.

Meanwhile, the second study titled “Towards Competitive Livestock, Poultry, and Dairy Industries: Consolidated Benchmarking Study” by PIDS Senior Research Fellow Roehlano M. Briones and Research Analyst Isabel B. Espineli compares the performance of the said industries with those of China, Thailand, and Viet Nam. While economies of scale allow commercial farms to have a low unit cost of production compared to backyard farms, the high tariffs on corn imports drive up the cost of livestock and poultry feed and the unit cost. The study recognizes the potential of dairy cattle and buffalo milk at a semi-commercial scale to become profitable. It recommends the need for a comprehensive review of trade policies affecting the value chain for greater competitiveness of the industries, investing in research and data collection as a basis for policy and program development, funding technology upgrades, regulatory and technical services, and production support, and resetting the oversight system in terms of regulatory compliance, zoning, imposition of grades and standards, food safety, and animal welfare.

An e-copy of the studies may be downloaded from the following links:

Domestic Benchmarking of the Philippine Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Industries: https://serp-p.pids.gov.ph/publication/public/view?slug=domestic-benchmarking-of-the-philippine-livestock-dairy-and-poultry-industries 

Towards Competitive Livestock, Poultry, and Dairy Industries: Consolidated Benchmarking Study: https://serp-p.pids.gov.ph/publication/public/view?slug=towards-competitive-livestock-poultry-and-dairy-industries-consolidated-benchmarking-study