Malaysian farmers welcome new ceiling price for Certified Paddy Seed Incentive but wants long-term solution, says PeSawah exco

ALOR SETAR, OCT 21 — Farmers in the country have welcomed the government initiative to implement a new maximum control price adjustment for the Certified Paddy Seed Incentive (IBPS) programme in Peninsular Malaysia which came into effect yesterday.

Pertubuhan Persaudaraan Pesawah Malaysia (PeSawah) executive council (exco) member Abdul Rashid Yob, however, said the organisation is requesting a long-term solution to be introduced to ease the burden of farmers with the increase in operating costs.

According to him, the initiative definitely helps farmers to some extent, but does not commensurate with the cost incurred by the farmers and their income.

“Previously, the Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) announced the decision to raise the floor price of rice from RM1,200 to RM1,300 per tonne when tabling the Malaysia Madani Budget 2024 (on October 13). This allows farmers’ income to be increased by 10 sen per kilogramme (kg), providing an increase of 8.4 per cent in income for farmers.

“However, yesterday Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu announced the maximum price of paddy seeds at the retail level has also increased from RM35 to RM45 per 20-kg bag. This means there will be a cost increase of 50 sen or 30 per cent for each kilogramme of paddy seeds bought by farmers at the beginning of each (planting) season.

“What I am saying is that we cannot balance up (between income and costs) when these costs also cover operational costs such as land rent, machinery, pesticides and various other agricultural inputs,” he said when met by reporters at a programme attended by 100 farmers in Kampung Teluk Jamat here today.

Meanwhile, Abdul Rashid said although the government had announced the increase in the floor price of rice under Budget 2024, he hoped that the rate would be increased to at least RM1,500 per tonne to raise farmers’ incomes.

Meanwhile, Azhar Hashim, a farmer from Bagan Serai, Perak said although the price of paddy seeds has been adjusted, the enforcement authorities need to conduct monitoring to ensure supplies from manufacturers comply with the price set by the government.

“The authorities must carry out close monitoring to ensure these seeds are available in the market, and not allow any parties to manipulate the price,” he added. — Bernama