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ALOR STAR – Padiberas Nasional Bhd (Bernas) will contribute RM50 million to the government at the end of this month, to be distributed to padi farmers nationwide beginning in March, said Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu.
He said each farmer will receive RM250, except those in Kelantan, Terengganu, and Pahang who have received theirs in stages since last year.
“A total of 219,402 padi farmers will be receiving Bernas’ special assistance to be paid in stages from March,” he said after attending an engagement session with the Muda Agriculture Development Authority Area Farmers’ Organisation at Pengkalan Kundor here today
In early December last year, Bernas agreed to allocate RM10 million to some 150,000 poor padi farmers across the country for 2022 and another RM50 million this year.
Commenting on the supply of eggs, Mohamad said that the situation has stabilised and the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority would constantly monitor and send supplies to areas facing shortages of eggs.
In order to resolve production-related issues faced by the companies involved, Mohamad said, the government has taken certain initiatives to help them, including facilitating the intake of workers, including bringing in foreign labour.
“The supply of eggs, as I have mentioned before, was affected by several factors, the labour shortage being among them,” he said.
Despite the issues, Mohamad assured that supplies of eggs and chicken would always be available in the market, but the price would be determined by market demand and supply from time to time. – Bernama, January 26, 2023
