No More Imported Vegetables At Farmers' Market, Teman Outlet In 2015

KOTA BAHARU (Kelantan, Malaysia), March 29 (Bernama) -- All farmers' markets and National Agribusiness Terminal (Teman) outlets will no longer be allowed to sell imported vegetables by 2015 in a move to support the local farmers, Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Noh Omar said. "I've discussed this with the Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority (Fama), and that from 2015, all farmers' markets and Teman outlets should source their vegetables locally. "The move will indirectly encourage productivity in the country's agricultural sector. "If we market products from outside, then all the efforts to set up farmers' markets and Teman outlets would be rendered meaningless," he told reporters after attending the ministry's monthly gathering here on Thursday. He also said that the ministry encouraged farmers to utilise modern technology to enhance their productivity and increase the supply of local products in the market. "At the moment, 40 per cent of vegetables sold at Teman outlets are from the neighbouring countries. "These vegetables are also grown in our country, and that's why from that year onward, we want vegetables which are available in the country to be sourced locally and sold at Teman outlets," he said. To increase local productivity, he said the ministry through Fama had identified 2,000 farmers' market operators to come together and run a contract farming project. "If an operator has five farmers under him, the ministry will help them to obtain instant loans and other facilities to carry out vegetable farming," he said, urging farmers to employ the latest technology such as fertigation to increase their productivity. Noh also reminded officers of the ministry not to sabotage the country agricultural policy by sending out misleading information to the grassroots especially farmers. "If wrong information is given, it could result in the government being accused of not walking the talk; report to me, either directly or through Facebook or blogs, if there are attempts to sabotage the policy," he said. Noh also took to task the PAS-led Kelantan government for lacking the commitment to help farmers by providing only a small allocation to them and being reluctant to cooperate with the federal government. "We should work together because the state government has the power concerning land while the federal government has the budget. The federal government provides far bigger allocations for the agriculture sector in Kelantan," he said. -- BERNAMA