More land required for food production

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MIRI: Sarawak’s hefty import bill could be drastically slashed if the state designated between 11,000 and 22,000ha of land annually for small-scale farmers to intensify food production.

FOR YOU: Dr Chan (seventh right) presents the grant to Chong witnessed by association members.

Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan said the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) will soon send a proposal on the requirements to Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud and the state cabinet for consideration.

“We are keen to have the proposal approved to allow more young people to be involved in modern farming. At the same time allowing all the existing farmers to increase food production and bring back Sarawakian farmers overseas to develop the land here,” he said.

He explained that a lot of young farmers remain in countries like Taiwan because they can’t find land here to farm.

“Isn’t that a loss to us? It is a great loss to us and therefore they should come back and farm in their own country and to be with their parents as well.”

Speaking to reporters yesterday after meeting Miri Planters Association members, Dr Chan said the allocation of land is among the strategies to increase production of fruits, vegetables and other food in Sarawak.

Currently, he said the state’s food import bill is still in the billions despite having plenty of idle land.

“Why should we do that? We have plenty of land here. Give the farmers the chance to do farming. The small farmers who can produce the local fruits, pineapples, oranges —  those things that we eat every day.”

Other efforts include encouraging hotels to serve more local fruits.

“Please don’t go on serving Sunkist, grapes and all these things as they are so expensive. Why can’t you have pineapples, nangka, mango and our rambutan? Our foreign guests surely enjoy our local fruits.”

“Why do we have to have grapes, Sunkist every day. I go to the hotel, I have grapes and Sunkist. Why can’t we have our very sweet oranges from Bintangor or Samarahan and why can’t we have pineapples served, we are famous for pineapples,” Dr Chan lamented.

During the function, Dr Chan also handed over an RM10,000 government grant to the Miri Planters Association.

Meanwhile, association chairman Chong Vui Kuat said they will fully support the proposal to designate more land for small-time farmers.

“It is important because modern farming has proven to bring a lucrative income besides increasing the production of fruits and other food products in Sarawak,” he said.