Food security depends on production, not prices, says MP

 

Gopeng MP Dr Lee Boon Chye has said that increasing food production and distribution will stabilise the prices of goods, resulting in food security.

He said this in response to Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s announcement yesterday that the government would introduce a flexible ceiling price that changes according to price input factors to ensure food security in the country.

It was one of the decisions reached during the Economic Action Council meeting, which Ismail Sabri chaired yesterday.

In a Facebook post this morning, Lee said it was the role of the government to set policies increasing the production of food and its distribution.

“Does anyone in the cabinet understand economics? Food security depends on production, not prices! Nuts!

“When production and supply increase, prices will stabilise. The government’s role is to set policy to enhance food production and distribution,” he said.

Gopeng MP Dr Lee Boon Chye

Lee added that the government should work towards removing burdensome bureaucracy, improving logistics and transportation, ensuring price transparency and encouraging the modernisation of food production.

He also called on the government to implement a national database of domestic food production to reduce economic risk to farmers, ensure price stability and avoid wastage due to overproduction.

Senior Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has said that commodity price volatility has surged, with food prices reaching levels not seen since the 2007-08 price spikes. - Mkini