Kota Kinabalu: Sabah is turning to more natural and cost-saving farming methods as global factors push up the prices of fertilisers, animal feed and pesticides.
State Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister Datuk Jamawi Jaafar said the ongoing Middle East conflict has affected oil prices, which in turn have made farming supplies more expensive and harder to get.
To cope with this, the ministry is encouraging farmers to produce their own compost using organic waste, as well as natural pest control solutions.
“Compost is not only more environmentally friendly than chemical fertilisers, but also safer for food production. Farmers can also make their own insect repellents to reduce reliance on costly chemical pesticides,” Jamawi said.
Jamawi was responding to concerns raised in the State Legislative Assembly by Senallang Assemblyman Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal on rising feed and pesticide prices, as well as supply shortages.
He added that ministry officers have already begun guiding farmers on how to make compost and natural pesticides.
Addressing complaints that chicken and egg prices in Sabah are higher than in Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak, Jamawi explained that most feed ingredients in the state are imported. For example, about 80 per cent of corn used in feed comes from overseas, making costs higher.
To tackle this, the ministry is encouraging more local corn planting. He said producing feed ingredients locally would help lower costs for farmers, which could eventually bring down the prices of chicken and eggs.
On this issue, Elopura Assemblyman Calvin Chong pointed out that some interested parties had previously considered planting corn but faced land constraints.
Jamawi replied that the state government is open to large-scale corn farming and is willing to provide land for such efforts.
On rice production, Jamawi said that Sabah’s self-sufficiency level has dropped from around 35 per cent in the past to just over 20 per cent today.
To improve this, he has been visiting districts across the state to encourage farmers to increase output and revive abandoned paddy fields.
“The ministry, through the Sabah Paddy Board, has introduced a five-year plan to raise average paddy yields from 3.5 tonnes per hectare to 6 tonnes per hectare.
“This will be achieved by using better-quality seed varieties, such as TR8 and TR11, and increasing the use of machinery.
“The plan also includes opening new farming areas, expanding upland and swamp rice cultivation, and restoring 3,000 hectares of idle paddy land between 2026 and 2030.
“Several backbenchers have also invited the minister to visit their areas to assess unused paddy fields and help farmers bring them back into production,” he said.
