Kota Kinabalu: Decentralised farming is the most effective solution to Malaysia’s growing food security challenge, according to former international television journalist, Ivy Simon, who swapped the newsroom for a five-acre organic farm in Selangor.
“Malaysia is slightly in crisis when it comes to our food. A majority of our food is imported and a lot of the food that is accessible to the B40 communities is highly processed and they are not getting enough nutrition,” said the Homegrown Farms Sdn Bhd co-founder.
“To us at Homegrown Farms, decentralised farming is definitely the answer. Whether it is an organic farm using sticks or a modern aquaponics system on your balcony, the goal is the same.
“It is about empowering communities to embrace sustainability, to secure their food and water source and to nourish their families,” said Ivy, who was among the invited plenary speakers at the Soroptimist International South East Asia Pacific Conference of Clubs.
She founded Homegrown Farms with her husband, Michael, a decade ago at the foothills of the Broga Valley in Semenyih, Selangor, after both had built careers in broadcast media.
The couple met at TV3 more than 20 years ago. Ivy has since worked as a correspondent for Agence France-Presse and a producer for CNN World, where she was part of the coverage team for the MH370 story.
The farm operates on a community-supported agriculture model, where subscribers pay upfront and receive fresh organic vegetables delivered directly to their doorsteps with zero plastic packaging.
“We skipped the middleman, we skipped the grocery stores, we skipped plastic packaging and cold storage and we just packed our vegetables in paper bags and sent them to our customers’ doorsteps,” Ivy said.
“The business began with a single WhatsApp message to a group of friends asking if anyone wanted fresh greens. It has since grown to feed more than 3,000 families across the Klang Valley,” she added.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, demand for the farm’s organic baskets surged so sharply that the couple was forced to place customers on a waitlist and bought additional land across from their original plot to expand operations.
“Imagine a waitlist for vegetables. That was our reality,” she said.
“Having an organic farm actually cushions the local supply for food because we do not depend on fertilisers from the Straits of Hormuz to reach our backyard,” she added.
The farm has since evolved from a food producer into a tourism destination and training centre, hosting school trips, families and educators.
A microbakery on-site produces sourdough and sandwich loaves sold directly to their customers, with Ivy pointing out that bread requires only flour, water, yeast and salt.
“We wanted to break the myth that you need to buy fancy things to have something that we all deserve for our health,” she said.
To reach a wider audience, Michael developed their Project Kebun Homegrown, a series of farming and gardening modules published on TikTok and YouTube and presented primarily in Bahasa Malaysia.
“The programme targets B40 communities and teaches viewers how to grow food in whatever space is available to them, including small balconies and backyards,” Ivy said.
“When we give women, in particular, the knowledge of how to choose healthy food for their families, it translates into a healthy family and healthy children.
“No farmer, no food. And that is a fact,” she said.