ALOR SETAR: Padiberas Nasional Berhad (Bernas) will contribute RM50 million to the government at the end of this month and this will be distributed to padi farmers nationwide beginning in March, said Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu (pic).
He said each farmer will receive RM250 but this special aid will not involve those in Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang who have received theirs in stages since last year.
“A total of 219,402 padi farmers will be receiving the Bernas special assistance to be paid in stages from March,“ he told a press conference after attending an engagement session with Muda Agriculture Development Authority (MADA) Area Farmers’ Organisation (PPK) at Pengkalan Kundor here today
In early December last year, Bernas agreed to allocate RM10 million for some 150,000 poor padi farmers across the country for 2022 and another RM50 million this year.
Commenting on the supply of eggs, Mohamad said that the situation has stabilised and the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) would constantly monitor and send supplies to areas facing shortage of eggs.
In order to resolve production-related issues faced by the companies involved, Mohamad said the government has taken certain initiatives to help them, including facilitating the intake of workers, including bringing in foreign workforce.
“The supply of eggs, as I have mentioned before, was affected by several factors among them labour shortage,” he said.
Despite the issues, Mohamad assured that supplies of eggs and chicken would always be available in the market, but the price would be determined by market demand and supply from time to time. – Bernama
