KOTA KINABALU, June 4 — The state government has reassured Sabahans that the region’s agricultural products will be more than enough to meet demand during the entire movement control order (MCO) period.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan said that Sabah has six months’ worth of rice supply.
“Our current stock of white rice at wholesalers and retail outlets stands at 12,528 metric tonnes while our buffer stock stands at 49,500 metric tonnes. We also still have 12,528 metric tonnes in shipment.
“This does not include fragrant rice, glutinous rice and basmati rice. On average, consumers in Sabah use 12,000 metric tonnes of rice per month,” he said in a statement here today.
Kitingan, who is also state agriculture and fisheries minister, said Sabah also has enough vegetables and fruit to last the entire duration of the MCO.
“The three Permanent Food Production Parks in Kundasang, Putatan and Lahad Datu are also operating as usual and have begun production,” he said.
“Sabah consumers need not be concerned about fish product availability because currently, supply exceeds demand,” he said.
According to Food Fish Security for Sabah’s projection, the demand for fish products for 2020 was 176,959 MT while output was 202,436 MT.
He also said that there was sufficient beef, buffalo meat, chicken, pork, eggs, and milk for this MCO period.
“As the minister in charge of the ministry that regulates agricultural products, I want to reassure our Sabah consumers that we will not run out of food.
“Therefore, there is no need to panic buy or stockpile essentials, particularly food items. These supplies are more than sufficient,” Kitingan said.
He also urged more Sabahans to register themselves for the Covid-19 vaccine as the state still has a low vaccination rate of 19.6 per cent.
