KUALA LUMPUR: A proposal to introduce crop insurance coverage for farmers has been submitted to the Cabinet for approval.
The idea was to provide insurance coverage for farmers whose crops were destroyed by natural disasters such as floods or dry spells, said Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Datuk Seri Noh Omar.
Although the Government currently provides a certain amount of compensation for farmers who lose their source of income in such circumstances, it is not enough to cover all their losses, he said.
“We originally proposed for insurance coverage to be made available to padi farmers but the Cabinet is currently studying the proposal to see which other agricultural sectors should be given insurance coverage.
“We will announce the decision once it is made,” he told reporters at the 7th International Postharvest Symposium 2012 here yesterday.
The symposium, which was attended by leaders and academicians in the agriculture industry from 50 countries, presented papers on managing and reducing postharvest losses.
Themed “Postharvest for Wealth and Health”, the five-day event is jointly organised by the Malaysian Agriculture Research and Development Institute (Mardi), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and the International Society for Horticultural Science.
At the launch, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said that in view of rising food demand, the Government would provide more incentives for the development of technology to manage postharvest losses.
“The estimated postharvest losses of highly perishable crops such as fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers in developing countries are about 40% about three times more than the losses faced by developed countries.
“Reducing postharvest losses will definitely add a sizable quantity to the global food supply,” he said.
He said that developing countries were currently the producers of about 78% of the world's horticulture.
“A reduction of even 10% in postharvest losses will significantly contribute an additional 105 million tonnes to the global market.
“This will facilitate efforts to mitigate food security issues, making food more available and affordable in developing countries,” he said.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/6/26/nation/11545984&sec=nation
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