{"id":11676,"date":"2006-06-19T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2006-06-18T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress\/2006\/06\/19\/organic-agriculture-the-next-big-thing\/"},"modified":"2021-03-19T01:19:42","modified_gmt":"2021-03-18T17:19:42","slug":"organic-agriculture-the-next-big-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.rakansarawak.com\/?p=11676","title":{"rendered":"Organic Agriculture: The Next Big Thing"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/span>\u201cThe \npotential in organic farming is high because people are more health and \nsafety conscious these days,\u201d revealed Encik Jaul Samion, Permanent \nSecretary to the Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture, Sarawak. <\/span>Today\u2019s \ndiscerning consumers are rather concerned about agriculture practices \nand the wide spread use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides that \ncould compromise the quality and safety of food produced. <\/span>In \norganic farming or organic agriculture, farmers are not allowed to use \nsynthetic pesticides or fertilizers on their crops or livestock.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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\n <\/span> <\/span> As \nthis method of farming is still at an infancy stage in Malaysia and an \nembryonic stage in Sarawak, it is a promising and lucrative venture to \nconsider for farmers interested to get a head start on the next big \nthing in organic agriculture. <\/span>Surveys have \nindicated that approximately 2% of the food supply in the United States \nis grown using organic methods, and sales of organic products has shown \nan annual increase of at least 20% in the last decade. <\/span><\/p>\n
According \nto the Organic Consumer Trends 2001, retail sales of organic food were \nprojected to be valued at US$9.3 billion or more.<\/span> \n <\/o:p><\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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To \nfurther encourage farmers to go into organic agriculture, the Malaysian \ngovernment has introduced an incentive scheme under the Ninth Malaysian \nPlan (9MP) for the period 2006 to 2010. <\/span>This \nincentive scheme involves providing assistance to eligible farmers in \ntheir setup of composting areas by the Department of Agriculture (DOA). <\/span>Farmers \ncould also apply for the Malaysian Organic Scheme (MOS), which provides \ncertification of organic produce and products, and participate in talks \norganized by DOA on the benefits of organic products. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
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<\/span> <\/span> At present, there are 22 organic farms covering an area of 464 hectares in Malaysia. <\/span>Mostly located in Peninsular Malaysia, these organic farms are mainly concentrated in vegetables and fruit farming. <\/span>Currently, \nthere are no statistics available in Sarawak on existing organic \nfarming ventures, although a small number of farmers in the state have \nattempted to venture into this line of organic agriculture management. <\/span><\/o:p><\/span>\n<\/div>\n