PUTRAJAYA – Increasing the floor price of rice procurement and providing additional subsidies to farmers are the proposals to be discussed at the upcoming National Cost of Living Action Council (Naccol) meeting on March 20.
Naccol food cluster task force chairman Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal said implementing these proposals could lead to lower rice prices for consumers, potentially reducing the cost to RM30 for 10kg, down from the current RM40.
“While the current floor price is RM1,300 per tonne, farmers are selling at RM1,700 per metric tonne, and this selling price is reasonable considering the costs borne by farmers.
“We suggest raising the floor price from RM1,300 to RM1,500 per tonne to protect farmers’ income during market fluctuations.
“Indirectly, this will encourage them to continue rice cultivation towards achieving self-sufficiency in production,” he told the media after an engagement session with representatives from farmers’ associations, manufacturers and wholesalers here today.
Syed Abu Hussin emphasised the importance of implementing additional subsidies for farmers alongside the proposed increase in the floor price of rice in order to benefit all parties involved, including farmers, manufacturers and the public.
He suggested providing farmers with an extra subsidy of RM200 per tonne of rice sold by the government.
This proposal aims to compensate for the shortfall in the purchase price margin per tonne paid by manufacturers to farmers, considering that the ideal purchase price for each tonne of rice is around RM1,700.
He said this RM200 subsidy is crucial for enabling farmers to generate profits, especially when manufacturers can only purchase rice at RM1,500 per tonne, adding that this subsidy ensures that white rice can be sold at RM30 for 10kg.
“The additional subsidy would cost RM360 million, significantly lower than the targeted subsidies for low-income groups (B40), which amount to billions of ringgit,” he added.
On February 23, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim instructed that the outcomes of the special Naccol meeting, particularly regarding the setting of white rice prices, be presented and finalised at the next meeting on March 20 before cabinet consideration. – March 15, 2024