SANDAKAN – Sabah will be well on its way to achieving a 100% self-sufficiency level (SSL) for food production if the state government would inject at least RM50 million into its agricultural research centres.
Sabah Agriculture and Fisheries minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan said the funds are needed to upgrade facilities, particularly at the state Agriculture Department’s three research facilities in Sandakan, Tawau, and Tuaran.
Currently, the department only receives about RM2 million per year for development and research purposes.
“To date, these research facilities have successfully found methods to multiply production and produced a variety of food products that could aid us in our efforts to secure food for the people.
“As a bonus, these products are highly profitable because of their high quality,” he said.
Jeffrey, who is also Sabah deputy chief minister, said this at a press conference after launching the 60th anniversary of the Ulu Dusun Sandakan Agriculture Research Facility, here, yesterday.
He said his dream is to empower the Agriculture Department and turn the facility in Ulu Dusun into the main research centre on agricultural tissue culture technology in Sabah.
“Our research centres are critical to our operations because without the expertise and knowledge of our researchers, we would have to rely on research done by the private sector or even overseas (researchers) on our own local plants.
“We also want our discoveries to remain locally to benefit local food industry players. We don’t want to lose commercial opportunities, and possibly have bio-piracy of our local biodiversity,” he said.
Also present at the event were his assistant minister Hendrus Anding, permanent secretary Datuk Mariana Tinggal, and state Agriculture Department director Jiffrin Mohamad.
During the event, Jeffrey launched a new pineapple variety called Sabah Volcanic Sweet-1 (SVS-1) and tissue culture technology to produce the fruit; a new tuhau (local wild ginger plant) variety LSTU-1;tuhau planting technology; and a new manual on planting coconuts of the “Tacunan” variant.
The new pineapple SVS-1 possesses several advantages over more well-known varieties such as MD2 pineapples. SVS-1 has a 16.5 brix (sweetness level) value – which is higher than MD2’s 14 – brighter gold-coloured flesh, and an average weight of 1.5kg to 2kg.
“The fruits are also easily packaged because of their uniform cylinder shape and size and the thorn-less leaves mean the plants are easier to maintain and harvest,” he said.
He also said he hopes the new tuhau planting technology would help Sabahans commercialise the food product systematically as the local ginger variant is currently not planted commercially in the region.
Meanwhile, Jeffrey said the Sabah government recently formed a cabinet-level committee to address food security issues.
“The committee is an important step as we intensify our efforts to increase our SSL levels across all food groups. We must ensure Sabah has sufficient food supply in the future.
“Under the committee, we also set up a task force, chaired by me, where we would put into action all the right strategies to achieve these goals,” he said. – The Vibes, September 25, 2022
