Food Security in Malaysia: Production of Paddy and Government’s Solution

By, Khairul Syahriyah Binti Md Salleh

Food security, as defined by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations in 2006, is, “ensuring that all individuals at all times possess both physical and economic access to the basic nutrition they require.” Food security in Malaysia has been a persistent concern for several years, but it rose to the forefront following a recent incident involving major investments by Khazanah Permodalan Nasional Berhad to Vivy Yusoff. This has provoked anger and debate among Malaysians on all social media platforms. Many argue for the allocation of funds to more beneficial areas like food security, the agriculture sector, or medicine. For instance, a user of application X, who goes by @pudynzayn, expressed his perspective regarding the investment, asserting that Khazanah PNB needs to allocate funds towards food security and agricultural industries rather than the fashion industry. To guarantee a nourished population while reducing reliance on imported food and enhancing food security in the country, Malaysia has put forward multiple initiatives to tackle this issue. 

A study by Firdaus et al. in 2020 claimed that Malaysian adults consume almost two plates of white rice daily. This statistic demonstrates the significant consumption of rice in Malaysia. Thus, the paddy cultivation sector is an essential part of Malaysia’s agricultural industry, as it produces the staple food rice, provides a source of income for farmers, and ranks as the third most produced crop in Malaysia, following oil palm and rubber. Regardless of the presence of primary granary regions in various Malaysian states, such as the Muda Agriculture Development Authority in Kedah, the Kemubu Agricultural Development Authority in Kelantan, and IADA in Pulau Pinang, Selangor, and Perak, Malaysia is limited to producing roughly 1.68 million tonnes of rice annually. The rice production in Malaysia serves only 73 percent of the population’s needs, necessitating the importation of rice from countries such as Thailand and India to satisfy the remaining demand. Zainol Abidin & Abu Dardak’s study stated that in 2021 Malaysia imported 1.22 million tonnes of rice, which is a mere 400,000 tonnes less than the rice produced domestically.

The Malaysian Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security introduced a framework, the National Agrofood Policy 2021-2030, that will improve rice production and ensure the availability of affordable, locally grown rice. This policy aims to establish a sustainable agrofood sector that enhances societal well-being while concurrently boosting economic growth. This project aims to raise rice output from 2.98 million metric tonnes (MT) to 3.62 MT by 2030, while the approximate cost of imported rice is anticipated to decline from RM1.51 billion in 2021 to RM1.25 billion by 2030. To accomplish the established objective by 2030, the National Agrofood Policy has increased the average harvest of rice per hectare from 3.5 MT to 5.3 MT, with this output expansion strategy aimed at maximising productivity while preserving the same amount of land cultivated. 

Food security is a present-day issue affecting Malaysia. However, many in our society have failed to acknowledge the gravity of this issue and its impact on the nation’s economic welfare. Paddy cultivation is an important industry in Malaysia, as rice functions as the staple food. The consumption of rice is significantly higher than its production, which is concerning, as it entails an import of this essential food supply from other countries. Therefore, as the citizens of Malaysia, it is a must for us to acknowledge the plans and frameworks on food security proposed by the government and to advocate for this issue as these techniques are implemented with the goal of improving the well-being of the nation.***