Chay Ee Mong, secretary of the Cameron Highlands Vegetable Growers Association and deputy chairman of the Federation of Malaysian Vegetable Farmers’ Associations, said foreign vegetables, especially from China, were threatening the viability of their local equivalents.
“At the farm gate, prices are often just 50 or 60 sen per kilo, and cheap imports make it worse. Imported vegetables come in freely without tariffs or duties, and we cannot compete,” he said.
Chay urged the government to act in the upcoming federal budget to protect farmers.
“What we want in the coming budget is for the government to reinstate the old incentive scheme, provide more realistic diesel subsidies, reduce or discount land rental fees, introduce stricter controls on imported vegetables, and ease the burden of compulsory contributions.
“If the government can resolve even two or three of these issues, farmers will feel some relief,” he said.
In 2009, the government gave out RM81 in cash aid to farmers for each tonne of vegetable produced. Chay called for the programme to be revived and the payout to be set at RM120 per tonne produced.
He explained that farming costs — made up of fertiliser, pesticides, seeds, wages and compulsory Employees’ Provident Fund and Social Security Organisation contributions — had soared in recent years.
“On top of that, the diesel subsidy we receive is not enough. We only get a RM200 monthly cash subsidy, but this is insufficient because diesel is needed for farm generators, not just vehicles,” he said.
Only farmers with annual sales below RM300,000 qualify for the diesel subsidy, he added, leaving larger operators in a bind.
“We have proposed raising the ceiling to RM1 million, but nothing has come out of it, even after our dialogues with the deputy finance minister,” he said.
Chay also urged Pahang to cut its land rental rates, now at RM4,500 per acre annually, saying the rate was too high given weak selling prices.
Food security expert Fatimah Arshad backed the call for tighter control on imports.
“Imports of fruits, chillies, vegetables and meat from countries such as China, India and Vietnam are cheaper, and this continuous influx has weakened local industries. Domestic producers cannot compete,” she said, adding that Malaysia is now a net importer of almost all food commodities except poultry and eggs.
“Our self-sufficiency levels for basic food items such as rice, fish and meat have all declined since the 1990s, while imports have risen. If there is disruption, the country will face a lack of availability and will need to import more,” said the Universiti Pertanian Malaysia academic.
Go beyond handing out subsidies
Fatimah stressed that the government must strengthen the local farm sector by increasing productivity and reducing reliance on foreign labour.
She cited India as an example, having within a decade become the world’s largest rice exporter by developing start-ups and digital applications to raise farm output.
“Targeted subsidies for farmers and consumers do reduce spending burdens and improve nutrition, but over time, they can distort markets and weaken producers and consumers from becoming self-reliant,” she said.
She said the only sustainable solution was to raise local farming capacity by modernising food production so that there is surplus. “When this is achieved, everyone will enjoy higher food security, continuous supply, strong purchasing power, quality nutrition and a stable food industry.”
Fatimah also called for a pilot nutritious school meal programme, wider use of digital subsidies, and stronger support for cooperatives to counter cartels and monopolies.
“If we want a secure food system, we must invest in research and development, climate-smart agriculture, and policies that dismantle monopolies and cartels. Cooperatives are a proven model to protect both farmers and consumers,” she said.