BAGUIO CITY, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Baguio Bureau) – Grocery shoppers at the SM in Baguio City — the summer capital of the Philippines — are at a quandary over the disappearance of pork from the mall’s supermarket.

For almost a week now, pork was nowhere to be found in the supermarket’s meat and frozen sections.  It has caused  some serious frustration among the locals who depend on SM for their pork supply for their lechon kawali, pata tim, pork adobo, sinigang na baboy, inihaw na baboy, bagnet, and other Filipino pork-based recipes.

When asked, SM Supermarket sales associates simply tell customers that “there has not been a delivery” of pork.

The situation has fueled lots of speculation from pork lovers — ranging from possible ASF (African Swine Fever) which may have affected  the pig population of the supermarket’s supplier to failure of SM to pay their pork suppliers on time.  Others have said that as a business strategy, beef and chicken suppliers may have paid SM a hefty fee to make pork disappear from the supermarket.

It is not clear if this pork shortage only applies to Baguio or other SM   Supermarkets across the country.