PARIT BUNTAR, May 6 (Bernama) -- The government has not ruled out the possibility of increasing rice imports from several regional countries following the ongoing conflict involving India and Pakistan.
Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu said the turmoil in both countries is expected to affect Malaysia’s rice import supply.
“Yes (import supply could be affected), because these two countries export about 38 per cent of rice to Malaysia. I hope and am confident that both sides do not want war.
“However, we will cooperate with countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia to ensure sufficient rice supply in the country,” he told a press conference after the official opening of the Perak Farmers’ Organisation’s Certified Padi Seed Production Centre here today.
Earlier, the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Nazrin Shah, graced and officiated the ceremony.
International news outlets reported that the conflict between India and Pakistan erupted following a bloody attack in Kashmir, India on April 22, which claimed 26 lives.
In another development, Mohamad was confident that there would be no panic buying of chicken eggs, citing sufficient supply through ongoing government initiatives such as the ‘Jualan Rahmah’ and ‘Jualan Agro’ programmes.
On predictions that egg prices may rise by up to three sen per egg following the full removal of government subsidies on Aug 1, he called it speculative.
“It’s just a projection. We’ve seen similar concerns before, such as when chicken prices were floated, but prices actually remained stable.
“With global feed costs like soy and grain corn on a downward trend, we hope egg prices will also remain steady,” he said.
The Federation of Livestock Farmers’ Associations of Malaysia (FLFAM) was quoted in a news report today as saying that egg prices could increase if production costs remain at the current rate of 38 sen per egg after the subsidy removal.
-- BERNAMA
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