Red as in red hot

Jabu calls for mass production of red rice, says variety commands premium price

SERIAN: Red rice may look unfamiliar to many of us, but this antioxidant-rich rice variety may well be the next niche product for Sarawak.

BOUNTIFUL HARVEST: Jabu (centre) joins farmers to2 harvest the red rice variety at a farm in Kampung Tibuh Mawang, 20km from Serian after the launching ceremony. At right is Manyin. — Photo by Johnathan Bullet

Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang said the red rice variety, which is known to be more nutritious than the ordinary variety, can earn good money because of the premium price it can fetch in the international market.

He said he would want to see more cooperation between the federal agency, Malaysia Agriculture Research and Development Institute (Mardi), and its state counterparts to improve production of the red rice.

Since red rice is already planted, albeit in smaller quantity by farmers in the state, Jabu is of the view that Mardi should work with the state’s agriculture research centre in Semenggok to evaluate the various types of red rice and develop the best one for mass production.

Jabu, who is Minister of Modernisation of Agriculture, also said that it was his wish to see that local farmers planting the red rice variety could harvest their crop twice a year.

He said if this could be done Sarawak could well be a world player in the production of the red rice variety as a health product.

According to Jabu, at the moment, despite the enormous potential its production of red rice by Sarawak is still very small.

“As a niche product, the red rice can command premium price. We cannot compete with the production of ordinary rice because Sekinchan (an area in Selangor) can produce more than 10 tonnes per hectare. Here, we don’t even produce half of that.

NICHE PRODUCT POTENTIAL: A basket full of newly harvested red rice.

“We don’t go into those areas where there is specialisation. Instead, we go for comparative advantage and niche. Science and technology can propel us there, and so will marketing,” he told reporters after the launch of the commercial production of traditional Sarawak red rice at Dewan Masyarakat Tebedu yesterday.

Some 350ha of land in Sri Aman, Tebedu, Daro, Bau and Serikin are now planted with red rice under a contract farming arrangement with Nestle (Malaysia) Berhad.

A hectare can produce 2.7 tonnes  to 3.5 tonnes per harvest. Both the traditional Sarawak red rice variety and the newly-developed variety by Mardi named YTM16 – which can be harvested twice a year – are planted in these farms.

The red rice commercialisation project is a multi-party collaboration involving Mardi, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti), Sarawak Department of Agriculture, Empire Rice Mills and Nestle.

Under Mosti-Mardi-Nestle-Red Rice Technofund signed and implemented in 2008, RM2 million out of the RM2.5 million are channelled to Mardi for primary R&D  and agronomy efforts, while the remaining RM500,000 forwarded to Nestle for commercialisation purpose.

The project is also to develop local raw materials for the production of Nestle’s range of infant cereals which the company currently markets for the Asean region.

Nestle Malaysia executive director (technical and production) Dr Detlef Frost said the company’s research had shown red rice to be one of the healthiest rice variety especially in terms of content of anthocyanin, a strong antioxidant.

“This project is also aimed at creating new income opportunities for the farmers. It strives to improve the standard of living and livelihood of the farmers in a sustainable manner, create opportunities and boost income levels.

“It also exposes the farmers to Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and helps them to be self-reliant,” he said.

Also present at the function were Minister of Infrastructure Development and Communication Dato Sri Michael Manyin, who is also Tebedu assemblyman, and Mardi deputy director-general Datuk Dr Shariff Haron.