KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 — Much ado has been reported about the stock and price of white rice in Malaysia since July 20 when the world’s biggest supplier, India, announced it would...
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 — Much ado has been reported about the stock and price of white rice in Malaysia since July 20 when the world’s biggest supplier, India, announced it would stop all its non-white basmati exports with immediate effect.
“It’s just that maybe because those who have been so used to buying imported rice, when the price has increased, they have to find a way. “By right, consumers don’t have to panic buy. Maybe the consumers have forgotten that the country has a stockpile of local rice as every country in Asean must have their own stockpile,” she toldSRI-Mas president Emmy Farha Alias agreed that Malaysia is not in facing a shortage of white rice supply. — Picture by Farhan NajibTo Anni, the current rice fuss has exposed a greater vulnerability — Malaysia’s failure to be self-sufficient on key food crops.
There seems to be a lack of focus on which type of crops and there is uncertainty on whether it is cash crops or crops for food security, she said, pointing to the creation of two separate ministries to tackle key crops — the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities.
Staff of rice distributor Pemborong Manjoi stacking packets of rice at their Manjoi, Ipoh shop. — Picture by Farhan NajibAnni said there may be a need to review the Control of Paddy and Rice Act 1994, also known as Act 522. “Say for example chicken, we have enough chicken, and everyone can have extra chicken every day,” she said, drawing parallels with the country’s favourite meat.
“What happens later, when the farmers start to produce more rice, people move back to import rice, what will happen to local rice?” Anni asked. “So if we really want to address this, we have to address what farmers are planting. What varieties are they planting,” she said. Elizabeth Gimbad, an anthropologist specialising in rice, agriculture and rural development in Sabah, said the crop situation in Malaysia can be traced back to the 1980s when the government made the pivot from food crops to agricultural commodities like palm oil and rubber.
Elizabeth Gimbad, an anthropologist specialising in rice, agriculture and rural development in Sabah, said the crop situation in Malaysia can be traced back to the 1980s when the government made the pivot from food crops to agricultural commodities like palm oil and rubber. — Picture by Hari AnggaraTo Elizabeth, Malaysia’s food security challenges today are a result of the government’s decision to shift from an agricultural economy to industrialisation.
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