SRI AMAN: The Sri Aman Development Agency (SADA), in partnership with the Batang Lupar Integrated Agricultural Development (IADA), organised a paddy granary roadshow at the Large-Scale Smart Paddy Field (SMART-SBB) project site in Tanjung Bijat here on Tuesday (Sept 19).
The event’s primary objective was to assess the progress and accomplishments of the SMART-SBB initiative, which aims to achieve a self-sufficiency level of 75 per cent in rice production.
SADA chairman Datuk Seri Rohani Abdul Karim revealed that the SMART-SBB programme involves 124 farmers working on a 37-hectare area.
“They are meticulously cultivating rice using MR269 seeds, with the goal of producing 4.5 metric tonnes of rice annually.
“This represents a substantial increase compared to the previous year, when production only reached 2.5 metric tonnes,” she explained.
Rohani went on to highlight that the SMART-SBB programme is under the management of Bernas Pupa, which also utilises the MR269 seed variety. “They cultivate a 35-hectare area, expecting a yearly yield of 2 metric tonnes.”
During the roadshow, she emphasised that the visit to the project site provided an invaluable opportunity to address various issues encountered during programme implementation.
These issues included challenges related to rice seed procurement, threats from birds and mice, and concerns regarding the low selling price of rice compared to prices in the Peninsular.
“The selling price of rice here is RM800 per tonne, while it stands at RM1,700 per tonne in the Peninsular.”
