Former deputy minister for agriculture Sim Tze Tsin has warned that some farmers in Cameron Highlands and Johor are being forced to dispose of their produce because of transportation woes.
"This form of wastage should not happen. Tens of thousands of low-income earners need food," said Sim, who is the Bayan Lepas MP.
He urged the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) to implement a "guaranteed buyback scheme" to buy excess produce during the movement control order (MCO) period in order to help farmers avoid losses.
He also urged the authorities to ensure that the supply chain for agricultural products was not disrupted during the MCO period.
"A lot of farmers are facing problems with input materials such as seeds, fertiliser and pesticides because shops are forced to close. This will affect the next season," he warned.
Other problems, said Sim, include a shortage of boxes and packaging materials because the producers of these items are also forced to close during the MCO period.
He said the government must look at the entire food supply chain or else food security during the MCO period might be affected.
"Without farmers, there is no food. Malaysians need their nutrition for the fight against Covid-19," he said.
Yesterday, the Federation of Malaysian Freight Forwarders (FMFF) had highlighted that their members were facing problems because different authorities have different interpretations of government orders. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.