By Nor Azlina Sani

Bernas contract project helping East Coast farmers

KUALA LUMPUR: Padiberas Nasional Berhad (Bernas) has since Jan 2017 launched the Farming Contract Project to help paddy farmers increase rice quality and yield through Good Agricultural Practices.

Eleven farmers at Bukit Kenak, Terengganu and four more in Pasir Puteh, Kelantan were chosen to join the project.

Bernama had the opportunity to go down to the ground and found that those who joined the project did so due to their passion and interest in paddy farming.

In addition to the generous returns from the venture, another factor that added to the appeal of the job was the flexible working hours.

Paddy farmers usually start working from 7am to 12 noon and can continue in the afternoon until dusk.

Bernas East Coast Region Supply and Farming Project Unit senior manager, Mat Sehak Salleh said that Terengganu and Kelantan were chosen for the project due to their potential for higher yield and to attract younger farmers.

The project is already showing results as Bernas is helping farmers by providing seeds and fertilisers as well as consultation and training services.

“Prior to the project, many paddy farmers knew little about paddy farming methods or the types of diseases that the plant could be afflicted with,” he told Bernama in an interview recently,

The project involves 15 hectares of paddy field in Bukit Kenak and eight hectares in Pasir Puteh.

Both areas have produced an average 4.5 metric tonnes of yield person in both areas.

One of the project’s participant in Bukit Kenak, Mohd Noor Ismail told Bernama that he started growing paddy for a living two years ago, after retiring from serving in the army.

The 60-year-old chose the field despite his age out of his passion for farming. He is currently working on 0.8 hectares of paddy land.

“Farming is a form of business where the rewards can be quite lucrative,” he said, adding that he learned a number of things regarding paddy farming after joining the project.

Mohd Noor, who was previously unfamiliar with the diseases that could afflict paddy plants, learned a breadth of information through the project as Bernas provided him with not only advice but fertilisers and pesticides as well.

“The application of knowledge learned have helped me increase yield by 30 to 40 percent,” he revealed.

Bernas is monitoring the progress of its project participants through a “farmwork schedule” that tells them when to fertilise or apply pesticides.

Mohd Noor believes that the project is an opportunity for the younger generation to learn how rewarding the field of farming can be, despite some perceiving as an unfavourable vocation as they would have to get down and dirty in the heat of the sun.

Another participant, Fauziah Mansor, 48, has been a paddy farmer for nearly 20 years.

“Ever since I joined the project my paddy yield has increased and became less prone to diseases.

“This is thanks to the advice and farming schedule which helps farmers produce good paddy that adhere to the rice industry standards,” he said.

On April 2, Bernas organised the 2018 Tani Bernas Award to reward those who have succeeded under its programme.

Abdul Satar Dollah, 54, from Bukit Kenak, Terengganu won the highest yield award. He received a trophy, certificate and RM5,000 as well as additional benefits such as a pesticide spraying machine, fertiliser machine and water pump.

Abdul Satar who came from a difficult background told Bernama that the success did not come easily.

“I worked on my own paddy field with the help of my children. I started with a small piece of farm land but today I work on a 24-hectare paddy land producing 101.2 tonnes of yield.

“Such amount of yield do not come easy as I needed to spend between RM1,000 and RM1,200 for every hectare of land. If we don’t do it right, we will lose out, so we need to do it right the first time,” he said.

His daily routine starts at 8am and concludes around 12.30 in the afternoon. This goes on for four months until the time for harvest.

“I’ve been selling my yield to Bernaas from day one because Bernas have been helping out paddy farmers a lot,” he said.

The winner of the improved performance award, Semah Said also received RM5,000 as well as a certificate and trophy and additional benefits like a pesticide spraying machine, fertiliser machine and water pump.

The 55-year-old from Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, said she started working in the paddy fields from a very young age and was now working on a 6.5-ha field.

A season’s yield brings in an attractive net income of around RM30,000.

“Being a woman is no barrier to success in the field because it is the interest and passion that drove me on.

“I would always attend courses on paddy planting such as those organised by the Kemubu Agriculture Farming Authority (KADA), the Muda Agriculture Farming Authority (MADA) and Bernas to improve my knowledge and methods in paddy planting,” she said.

According to the Padiberas Nasional Berhad (Bernas)’s Good Agricultural Practices, among the first steps paddy farmers need to take to determine the suitability of a soil is to measure its pH. A soil pH of between 5.5 and 6.6 is ideal. Otherwise, liming would need to be done.

The infrastructure in a paddy field also needs to function and be well-maintained, and this includes that of the irrigation and drainage system.

Farmers also need to use quality seeds approved by the Agriculture Department at a rate suitable with planting methods.

Soil preparation must be done according to specification where farmers need to plough the land thrice for favourable bulk density.

The levelling of paddy fields would then be carried out to improve water use efficiency, increase grain yield and grain quality, hasten seed germination and control weed growth.

According to the field supervisor at Bukit Kenak, Norizan Omar, paddy planting would done simultaneously according to schedule or the watering schedule of an area.

“Bernas’s field work schedule need to be adhered to, and this includes when to plant, when to fertilise and when to apply pesticides,” he said.

Farmers need to make early preparation for changes in climate such as droughts and plan the planting schedule around the rainy season or the area’s watering schedule.

Irrigation is increased as the rice seedlings grow and then gradually lowered in increments until the field is dry when the rice is ready to be harvested.

The fields are drained at least two weeks before harvest because damp soil can hinder the harvesting process and increase the dirt percentage in harvested rice.

Ripened paddy need to be harvested at the right time, which is when it is 85 percent ripe. Waiting until the paddy is fully ripe may cause it to become spoiled.

Harvested rice need to be sent to the factory within 24 hours as any later may cause damage due to collected moisture.

Farmers are also recommended to use lorries with a canvas cover to prevent harvest from being exposed to dirt or moisture during transport.

To prevent misunderstandings, farmers need to be present during the paddy selling process. This can help inculcate awareness among farmers of the importance of maintaining the quality of paddy. - Bernama