KAMPAR, The pilot project of planting grain corn for the livestock industry in Perak is starting to show positive results, with an expected record yield of about 60 tonnes.
State Rural Development, Plantation, Agriculture and Food Industry Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Zolkafly Harun said the production was a result of developing an 11-hectare area, covering two districts, under the National Agro-Food Policy 2.0.
He said that the pilot project, of a nine-hectare area in Kampar and four hectares in Kuala Kangsar, commenced in February this year.
The Kampar farm, harvested today, is expected to yield 40.50 tonnes while the Kuala Kangsar cultivation, which will be harvested soon, can produce 18 tonnes.
‘The project, in collaboration with the state Department of Agriculture, which is carried out by Syarikat Ikatan Masz in Kampung Redang Sawa, near Kampar, is the first and largest project in the state to help cover the need for grain corn in the formulation of animal feed (for local breeders).
‘Growers start
ed planting in February, using the GWNG 5005 variety, and received assistance from the state agriculture department under the provisions of the Food Security Project: Strengthening the Development of Grain Corn (Maize) Industry,’ he said, after visiting the grain corn planting project in Kampung Redang Sawa, here, today.
Also present were state Agriculture Department director Norsiyenti Othman and Ikatan Masz general manager Mohd Zaini Abdul Ghani.
According to Mohd Zolkafly, the state government is confident that the cultivation of grain corn can help the country reduce its dependence on imported corn as one of the main ingredients in the preparation of animal feed.
‘Now we want to focus on the production of grain corn in the state through the cooperation of various agencies, so that we can expand the crop to all districts after the success of onion cultivation at Kampung Ladang Bikam in Sungkai.
‘This corn will then be sold in the local market to reduce dependence on imported animal feed, as well as to
stabilise the market to achieve the Food Security agenda outlined in the Prosperous Perak Plan 2030,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Mohd Zaini said that he previously cultivated sweet potato and sweet corn in 2010, before being urged by the state Agriculture Department to plant grain corn this year.
‘The state Department of Agriculture offers harvesting machinery services, including a drying machine at Titi Gantung, which can process five tonnes of harvest per day.
‘This just-harvested grain corn (with high moisture content) needs to go through a drying process within 24 hours after harvest to reach a moisture level of around 13 to 14 per cent before being marketed to local farmers according to the current market price,’ he said.
He said that grain corn crops are not complicated, but take up to 110 to 120 days to harvest, compared with sweet corn which takes around 70 days.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency
