Slow sales hurting Riverton pig farmers

Pig farmers in Riverton, St Andrew, say the importation of pork has resulted in low or no sales, forcing them to eat some of the animals themselves.

When THE STAR visited the community yesterday, several pig farmers were busy attending to a 400-pound pig. However, it was not because a buyer had requested it. Rather, it was for their own consumption.

"Importation of meat mash up our local meat. We use to get $150 a pound fi live hog bout two year now. From the foreign thing start a $100 it gone to. People all a tell yu seh a $80 dem want fi it," said Nathaniel Bahdal, one of the many farmers at Riverton.

Bahdal said he has been a pig farmer for more than 20 years.

FROM ROGER CLARKE GONE

"A kill we affi a kill him fi eat, we nah nuh sale fi the hog dem, so when a man tell yuh seh him lose X amount, a nuh lie him a tell. We just do this cause a it we live off a. We affi a eat dem cause if dem tan deh til dem get big, weh we a go do," Bahdal said.

Another farmer told THE STAR that: "From Roger Clarke gone, the ting drop. Memba Roger Clarke a tell yu eat what you grow, grow weh yuh eat, suh no meat never did a come in ... dem time deh the price did right."

On Sunday, a farmer in the community lost 150 of his pigs to a fire, which up to the time of our visit yesterday, was still being attended to by fire personnel.

Our news team was told that there are pens around the dump with as many as 500 pigs.

"The reason why so much pig deh yah a because none nah sell. One time gone truck and van pile up ya suh. Hog man from all bout come yah," a farmer said.