RANAU: Sabah should draw lessons from Thailand’s successful home-garden and premium durian farming model to increase rural household incomes while strengthening the State’s food security, said Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister Datuk Jamawi Jaafar.
He said the approach could begin on a small scale, with households cultivating food crops and premium durian varieties around their homes before gradually expanding production and establishing organised collection centres.
“Thailand has successfully developed the concept of home gardens, including planting Monthong durians around houses, with collection centres established at village level.
“I have attended courses there two or three times, and we can see how the model has been developed. We can adopt a similar approach in Sabah,” he said.
Jamawi was speaking to reporters after officiating the Seminar on Durian Planting – Thailand Techniques at the Ranau Community Hall here today.
He said Sabah had significant potential to develop its durian industry, but much of its current production still consisted of kampung durians, resulting in depressed prices during peak seasons.
According to him, kampung durians could fetch as little as RM2 to RM5 per fruit when supply was high, particularly when farmers sold their produce along roadsides or at tamu markets.
Rather than allowing existing trees to remain low-value producers, Jamawi said farmers should explore adult grafting technology to transform kampung durian trees into premium varieties such as Musang King, Black Thorn and Tupai King.
“Even if the durian tree is already large, there is technology that allows us to graft it with premium varieties.
“In five years, kampung durian trees can potentially be transformed into premium durian producers,” he said.
Jamawi said farmers should not wait for collection centres to be established before starting their plantations, as the Government first needed to build sufficient production capacity.
He encouraged rural residents to begin planting on a small scale, including around their homes.
“If you want to plant five Musang King trees and two Black Thorn trees, start first. Let us build the numbers.
“Our Agriculture Department officers can then record the number and types of trees in each constituency. Five years from now, we will know how many Musang King, Black Thorn, IOI and other varieties are available in each parliamentary constituency,” he said.
Such data, he said, would allow the Government to plan more effectively for future marketing and establish collection centres at the State Assembly or parliamentary constituency level once production reaches a viable scale.
He added that the State Government had also established Sama (Sabah Agricultural Marketing Board) this year to strengthen efforts to market agricultural produce from rural communities alongside existing marketing mechanisms.
Jamawi said the Government had so far recorded about 3,000 home-garden operators across Sabah, with a target of increasing the figure to 5,000 within five years.
He said the home-garden concept was not limited to rural areas and would also be introduced in urban communities.
Discussions had been held with the Kota Kinabalu mayor to identify suitable open spaces that could be developed as community gardens for residents living in condominiums and apartments, he added.
“If suitable spaces are available, we can open them to residents who want to grow crops on a small scale, whether in groups of five, 10 or 20 people. We can provide the space,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jamawi commended the two speakers at the seminar, renowned durian influencer and competition judge Che Mie @ Roshelmy Ramli and southern Thailand durian expert Sifu Ahmad Somad, popularly known as Pak Somad, for sharing their knowledge and experience with Sabah growers.
He said Pak Somad’s experience was particularly relevant, having generated about RM100,000 in one season from an eight-acre durian farm, demonstrating the potential returns from systematic and technology-driven durian cultivation.
The seminar provided local growers with practical knowledge on durian cultivation techniques, fertilisation and Thai technologies aimed at improving productivity and returns.
Jamawi also expressed appreciation to Haji Zul and Datuk Japiril, chairman of the Ranau Durian Growers Association, for organising the programme.
He said agricultural development should not be confined to official ceremonies, stressing the importance of engaging directly with farmers and sharing practical knowledge that could translate into better yields and higher incomes.
He said the strategy was to start small, build production systematically, keep proper records and develop the market alongside it.
