GEORGE TOWN: The Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) has urged the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry to take immediate action to overcome the problems faced by padi farmers in the Kemubu Agricultural Development Board (KADA) in Kelantan.
This action is necessary to boost their income and the country's rice production.
CAP president Mohideen Abdul Kader said besides infrastructure being one of the causes of the decline in rice yields in KADA, the depletion of rice padi land due to the implementation of development projects also contributed to the lack of rice yield in the area.
He said other contributing factors included threat of floods, droughts, pest attacks and loose rice padi soil.
While the rice yield in the area exceeded the national average of 4.1 metric tonnes per hectare, he said KADA still lagged behind Selangor's yield of 4.32 metric tonnes, the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (MADA)'s 4.24 metric tonnes, and Penang's 5.05 metric tonnes per hectare.
"The imperfect irrigation system and its ineffective functioning of it have caused several padi fields in KADA to face imminent threat. Many rice stalks are stunted in growth and destroyed due to episodes of drought and floods.
"In May 2023, 7,800ha of rice crops in the (KADA) area were affected due to the hot weather in Kelantan. And in December the same year, KADA suffered a RM17 million loss due to the destruction of rice stalks inundated by flood waters.
"In 2022, due to problems with the drainage system, 1,000ha of padi land became loose and KADA lost 4,200 metric tonnes of rice.
"This incident is of great concern to CAP and if it is not dealt with immediately, more padi land will not be able to be cultivated and will be abandoned," he warned.
Therefore, Mohideen said, in order to save the future source of income and livelihood of 7,648 padi farmers and maintain the 25,149 hectares of padi fields in KADA, CAP hoped that the ministry would take immediate action on the causes of the problems.
CAP, Mohideen said, also urged the departments and agencies involved to pay serious attention to the effects of pesticides and the usage of heavy machinery that could threaten the environment and affect padi fields.
"CAP believes that if the problems continue, not only will the KADA padi farmers experience hardship, but the food supply for the people and the country's agricultural sector will also be affected," he added.
It was reported last month that KADA had taken the proactive step of providing an additional 150 units of pumps this year to overcome the anticipated water supply challenges caused by the El Nino phenomenon.
KADA chairman Muhammad Husin said these pumps would be deployed according to farmers' current needs, covering 26,000ha of padi fields across six KADA padi planting districts.
In October last year, the Auditor General's Report recommended a review of the Ladang Merdeka Project after RM4.36 million in padi proceeds were distributed to unverified representatives of participants.
The Ladang Merdeka Project, under KADA, was to develop abandoned padi fields in the state of Kelantan and provide income to farmers.