Azlan Othman
The Department of Agriculture and Agrifood at the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) held an open day on good paddy planting management at Sengkurong Sixth Form Centre yesterday.
The programme aimed to disseminate information to the public as part of the efforts to increase paddy yield and maintain value chain consolidation in paddy production.
Among the activities held included a video presentation, deliberation and consultation on information sharing to facilitate information on services and agricultural input offered by local entrepreneurs or companies.
The programme also served as a platform for companies and local entreprenuers to promote their products and share information on proper and recommended paddy planting management.
Consultations of various agricultural services such as nursery, machinery, drying machine, supplier of agricultural input materials, and drone services from local companies were also held.
Meanwhile, Senior Plant Breeder at the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood at the MPRT Sheikh Mohd Radzi bin Dato Paduka Sheikh Haji Adanan said public response on Sembada 188 paddy variety, which can yield up to six metric tonnes per hectare, has been encouraging.
“In-bred paddy variety tastes better but the field performance is lower. The variety only produces three metric tonnes per hectare compared to the hybrid variety, which can produce four to six metric tonnes per hectare,” said Sheikh Mohd Radzi.
Continuous research in paddy field performance is vital to ensure excellent variety that is suitable for local consumption, he added.
