Mada Learns Paddy Cultivation Technique In Other Countries To Increase Production

From Kamarul Ariffin Md Yassin MIE (Japan), May 23 (Bernama) -- The Kedah state's Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada) will study and learn new techniques of paddy cultivation that are being practiced in several countries, to find the best way to increase the country's paddy and rice production. Its chairman Othman Aziz said Mada should take a step forward in looking at ways of producing paddy in other countries, in order to find the best method. He said that Mada had brought farmers and area farmers' organisation (PPK) to see paddy cultivation practice in India and Thailand, so that those involved would enhance efforts to increase the country's paddy output. "Mada marks its 45th anniversary this year. In 1970, the average of paddy production was only two tonnes per hectare and now it has increased to more than six tonnes...we had been given KPI (key performance indicator) of seven tonnes per hectare this year so Mada needs an out-of-the-box approach. "Farmers also have to change. The average of the national paddy production is 6.5 tonnes per hectare, and there are areas that already have achieved 10 tonnes, but there are (areas) still at four," he told reporters after joining a Kedah Trade and Investment delegation visit to Mie Prefecture Agricultural Research Institute (Mari) here. He said the Mada areas, involving its three regions in Kedah and one in Perlis, were experiencing post-harvest losses of 15 per cent. "The Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi) research found that we have been using a modified harvesting machine, so this is not right. We have to try a new machine and also need to learn from abroad," he said. Meanwhile, Othman said Mada also intended to work with Mari in order to increase the paddy yield, farm mechanisation, training and water management, and especially those related to research and development (R&D). "Japan and Mie Prefecture's priority is more to high-quality paddy yield, while Mada and Malaysia in general are still trying to increase the paddy quantity as well as the country's self-sufficiency level (SSL) by 2020, but yet we face the same problem," he said. He said in terms of irrigation, farmers in Mie Prefecture were using the water, only at a minimum level. "They manage the water in the initial phase only five centimetres from the ground...that is the only water needed. The way they use water can be followed as it can save water. At Mada, we release (water) a lot. It could give problems to the industry if there is a water problem. They use water efficiently," he said. He said in Mie Prefecture, planting was done through nursery method whereas Mada had adopted the direct seeding method as a result of improper use of the machine. "In farm mechanisms, machines and lighter tractors are mostly used in Mie unlike in Malaysia. Our paddy plowing machines are heavy, large...it affects the soil conditions in the long term. We have to learn. We also use third parties for tractors, machinery for harvesting and plowing. Here (Mie) there are many cooperatives that actually have the same function as the PPK," he said. Othman said Mada had generated about 38 per cent of the country's paddy, which involved areas totaling 100,000 hectares out of the 678,000 hectares of paddy farming areas. "If we are able to improve an average of one tonne per hectare, we will increase the country's paddy output by eight per cent. If all the paddy planting areas across the country are also increased by one tonne per hectare, we can achieve the SSL status," he said. -- BERNAMA