Passing Of Sarawak Padi & Rice Board Bill, 2026 Expected To Strengthen Food Security
KUCHING: The passing of the Sarawak Padi and Rice Board Bill, 2026 is seen as a strategic step in strengthening the state's food security, thereby helping to stabilise rice supply and prices in the future.
Sarawak Minister for Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom noted that the Sarawak Government's primary focus currently is to increase local rice production and develop a more sustainable, modern, and organised paddy industry ecosystem.
According to him, strengthening the supply chain and increasing domestic production capacity is vital before price control mechanisms can be implemented more effectively.
“Once Sarawak succeeds in producing sufficient rice supplies and gains control over its own downstream chain, we will then be in a stronger position to stabilise rice prices.
“For now, the main focus is ensuring the state's food supply remains guaranteed and that local production is increased,” he said.
He said this during a press conference held in conjunction with the 19th Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting on Tuesday.
He added that rice price regulation currently remains under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government through Padiberas Nasional Berhad (BERNAS) and relevant ministries.
In the same development, he informed that Sarawak's current rice stockpile capacity can only sustain needs for approximately two to three months, compared to Peninsular Malaysia which has reserves for up to five or six months.
According to him, this situation highlights the urgent need to accelerate the development of the local paddy industry to reduce the risk of supply disruptions following geopolitical uncertainties, logistical issues, and global supply chain challenges.
Consequently, the state government is now focusing on the development of large-scale paddy cultivation areas to achieve a rice self-sufficiency level (SSL) target of 60 per cent by the year 2030.
He noted that out of the 14,000 hectares identified for paddy cultivation development, approximately 6,000 hectares involve state land which has the potential to be developed within a shorter timeframe.
He further explained that the Large-Scale Smart Paddy Field (SBB) approach will be among Sarawak's primary strategies for developing the paddy sector, as it is capable of increasing the use of mechanisation, automation, and more efficient irrigation systems to bolster the state's rice production productivity. -UKASnews
