KOTA KINABALU, March 9 — Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu has assured adequate chicken and meat supply to meet the demand for the month of Ramadan and during the Aidilfitri festive season.

He said the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (KPKM), together with relevant ministries and agencies, will ensure that the supply of essential goods is sufficient.

"If the supply is inadequate, we can import goods as we have established agreements with exporting nations like Thailand and China,” he told reporters after officiating the Sabah International Food Expo 2024 (SIFEX2024) at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) here today.

Mohamad said that this year, the ministry is placing emphasis on the development of four key industries, namely padi and rice; poultry and eggs; red onion; and pineapple, to ensure ongoing progress, address food security challenges, and enhance economic growth in the agricultural sector.

"Currently, the country’s chicken supply is stable, but we cannot solve the problem if our ringgit remains relatively low. Importing food from abroad in dollars can lead to an increase in import costs.

"As for the supply of eggs, it is sufficient, but we still import them, and we hope the breeders will ramp up their production efforts. For this festive season, the ministry will work with relevant agencies to ensure sufficient food supplies,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mohamad emphasised the importance of achieving a 100 per cent self-sufficiency ratio (SSR) for rice to secure an adequate rice supply for the people.

"Currently, the national SSR stands at 65 per cent... but the goal of reaching 100 per cent SSR can be achieved due to the ample land available, for example in Sabah, Sarawak, and Pahang.

"To ensure that we can achieve 100 per cent SSR, we can also learn how to properly plant and fertilise. Other nations can get up to more than 10 tonnes of rice in one hectare, but we in Malaysia can only get three to five tonnes of rice in one hectare,” he said.

In the meantime, Mohamad Sabu, who is also the Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) president, expressed hope that his party would stand a chance to field its candidates in the upcoming Sabah State Election.

When asked if Amanah still had a chance given that the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and DAP previously had greater opportunities to field candidates in Sabah, he said it could be done through negotiations. — Bernama