LUNDU: The agricultural sector must embrace modern technologies supported by proper infrastructure in order to achieve the desired level of productivity.
Minister for Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom said the ministry is committed to creating a complete supply chain to ensure that agricultural products are marketable and can be successfully sold.
“Agriculture is not about living hand-to-mouth. It’s about ensuring a positive return on your efforts. You must have a healthy profit and loss (P&L) statement — you need to make a profit in whatever you do,” he said after visiting the paddy cultivation site at Tanjung Purun near here today (June 10).
He stressed the need to shift mindsets, aiming to produce high-income-generating crops, with a target of RM15,000 monthly income per household.
“We need to build a full supply chain — from upstream to downstream. Everything we do in agriculture must be sellable and market-driven,” he said
Acknowledging that in the past the government mainly encouraged people to produce, Dr Rundi emphasized that agricultural products must now also be marketable — not just during peak seasons, but throughout the off-season as well.
Therefore, he explained that the Department of Agriculture and research officers must identify specific production zones for premium products in the state.
Among these, Dr Rundi mentioned dabai, black pepper and pandan coconut, which are only suitable for cultivation in certain areas such as Song, Kapit and central Sarawak.
“If we plant them elsewhere, the taste and quality won’t be the same. So, we need to understand the strengths of each area and focus on developing based on those natural advantages,” he added.
