Nafas' sole distribution of paddy seeds to ensure quality, ceiling price

By Munirah Musthpar

PASIR SALAK, March 1  -- The appointment of the National Farmers Organisation (Nafas) as the sole distributor for the Certified Paddy Seed Incentive programme starting this year will end the problem of the quality of seeds and also high prices that have existed for over 20 years.

A paddy farmer in Kampung Sungai Jejawi, Seberang Perak near here, Mohd Rodzi Bakar said the appointment of Nafas is one of the government's initiatives to ensure farmers get quality yields.

Mohd Rodzi, 60, who is also the Sungai Jejawi village head, said most of the farmers in his village started dealing with the Seberang Perak area farmers organisation (PPK) to get certified paddy seeds over the past two years instead of using middlemen or factories.

“Farmers here have been frustrated with the poor quality paddy seeds which has resulted in a loss of money, and also time and energy.

“Now, that Nafas is involved, of course everything is more controlled in terms of the ceiling price and quality of the seeds. As the farmers’ representative here, I really appreciate the efforts of the government and Nafas in showing concerns about this aspect of certified paddy seeds,” Mohd Rodzi, who is also a board member of the Seberang Perak PPK, told Bernama.

Zulkafli Abd Rahim, 54, who has been involved in rice cultivation for the past 25 years, is relieved that the problems related to uncertified paddy seeds and the high prices have been resolved. He said once the seeds were sold to farmers at RM45 a bag, compared with RM35 per bag as set by the government recently.

He said apart from the price, quality is also important because among the problems encountered using uncertified paddy seeds include its failure to germinate and the existence of foreign substances including grass seedlings.

“Apart from soil, quality seeds play important role in the success of rice cultivation. If the seeds were not of good quality, of course, it will not germinate and we will have to buy more seeds for replanting and this will affect our harvesting schedule, eventually leading to the crops being attacked by insects and pests.

“All this takes time and capital, and can lead to a loss of tens of thousands of ringgit. I am confident that with Nafas' involvement there will be better quality control and distribution of certified paddy seeds,” said Zulkafli, who has more than 10 hectares of paddy fields in Block A and Block C in Seberang Perak.

Abdul Latif Hamid, 56, on the other hand, said that the appointment of Nafas was also seen as important move to avoid the manipulation of certified paddy seeds and prices through uncontrolled purchases by various parties because everything will now be monitored by Nafas.

"Previously, some farmers dealt with middlemen and received poor quality paddy seeds, causing farmers to suffer losses. Hence, through Nafas, having seeds of quality will no doubt be a relief to farmers,” said Abdul Latiff, who has been involved in rice cultivation for more than 20 years in Block D, Seberang Perak.

In November last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries appointed Nafas as the sole wholesaler under the Paddy Seed Incentive programme to supply seedlings directly to farmers.

Nafas has also been entrusted to handle the distribution of certified paddy seeds as it possesses an efficient distribution chain through 145 PPK in the Peninsula.

-- BERNAMA