News Details

ASF cases decline in 2025 despite slight mid-year increase

NPO

•

August 18, 2025

MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) reported Monday that African swine fever (ASF) cases this year remain significantly lower compared to 2024 levels, even with a small rise in infections this month.

As of August 7, ASF-affected villages increased to 51 from 28 recorded on July 11, based on data from the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).

“Most of the cases last year also occurred in August. Now we are at mid-August with 51 affected villages, but if you compare the figures with the same period last year, the number is still significantly lower,” DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said during a press briefing.

In 2024, ASF resurged in the third quarter, starting in Batangas provinces such as Lobo, Lian, Rosario, Calatagan, and Lipa City.

For 2025, however, de Mesa said another resurgence is less likely due to the government’s vaccination rollout and tighter border controls.

“The areas with ASF cases this year are not the same communities that were hit last year,” he added.

Most of the affected barangays are in Bohol, while others were reported in the Cordillera, Ilocos, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, and Eastern Visayas regions.

—NPO News Team | PNA-PR