Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu said the government remains committed to protecting farmers’ welfare amid higher expenses for agricultural inputs, including fertilisers, pesticides and machinery services.
PETALING JAYA: The government has increased incentives for paddy farmers and expanded support measures across the agri-food sector to help producers manage rising operating costs while improving income stability.
Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu said the government remains committed to protecting farmers’ welfare amid higher expenses for agricultural inputs, including fertilisers, pesticides and machinery services.
In a written parliamentary reply to Datuk Mohd Suhaimi Abdullah (PN-Langkawi), who asked about measures to increase farmers’ income and whether existing assistance schemes would be reviewed, the ministry said several paddy-related incentives had been enhanced.
“The pesticide incentive has been increased from RM200 to RM300 per hectare per season, while the ploughing incentive has been raised from RM160 to RM300 per hectare per season.
“The government has also introduced a paddy harvesting incentive of RM50 per hectare per season and a one-off advance payment of RM200 per hectare to assist farmers with early ploughing activities,” he said.
The ministry said improvements had also been made to simplify the purchase and supply of diesel for agricultural machinery to ease operational challenges faced by farmers.
He said Beyond direct financial assistance, the government is implementing measures to improve paddy productivity through soil fertility restoration programmes, upgrades to irrigation and drainage infrastructure, and greater adoption of mechanisation and automation.
These include the Large-Scale Smart Padi Programme and the Five Seasons in Two Years (5M2T) Programme under the Transformation of Paddy Land Development and Productivity Enhancement Project outside designated paddy granary areas.
He said research and development efforts would continue to focus on producing higher-quality and higher-yielding paddy varieties to strengthen the sustainability of the sector.
Meanwhile, KPKM said it does not set a uniform minimum income benchmark for farmers, livestock breeders and fishermen due to differences in operating conditions across the agri-food sector.
In a separate written parliamentary reply to Mohd Misbahul Munir Masduki (PN-Parit Buntar), who asked about income indicators and measures to protect producers’ profit margins amid rising costs and diesel subsidy rationalisation, the ministry said a single benchmark was unsuitable due to differences in production scale, costs, productivity and supply chains.
Instead, the ministry monitors income performance through indicators such as sales, production costs, productivity and profit margins.
To ease cost pressures, KPKM has introduced measures including the BUDI Agri-Komoditi cash assistance programme, which provides RM400 monthly aid to eligible producers, and continued subsidised diesel for agricultural vehicles under SKDS 2.0.
Paddy farmers also receive support through the Paddy Farmers Ploughing Incentive of RM300 per hectare each season, the Paddy Price Subsidy Scheme of RM500 per metric tonne, and agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilisers and pesticides.
For fishermen, subsidised fuel remains available at RM1.65 per litre, while marine and inland fishermen receive monthly allowances of RM300 and RM250 respectively. B40 fishermen are also eligible for equipment assistance of up to RM15,000.
For the livestock sector, KPKM is expanding programmes involving technology adoption, integrated farming and alternative energy sources, including the Pengganda 30 Programme, which provides a 90:10 matching grant for livestock inputs.
The National Dairy Industry Development Programme under RMK-13 also aims to help dairy farmers achieve an income target of RM72,000 annually, or RM6,000 monthly.
