“We need more involvement in organic farming. With the amount of land available and quantity of rain received throughout the year in Sarawak, organic agriculture has the potential to outperform the conventional method,” Kadin said. He was giving a talk on ‘Recent development in Sarawak Organic Agriculture: Post Organic Asia 2008’ at Kompleks Azam yesterday. From 2006 to 2009, only seven applicants applied to start up organic based farming with the Department of Agriculture, Sarawak. Three have withdrawn while only one awarded the Malaysian Organic Scheme (SOM) certification. Three others are still under verification. Malaysia has 96 registered farms of which 17 are SOM-certified. These farms concentrate mainly on planting fruits, vegetables, rice and herbs. Kadin said it is good for organic farmers to be in compliance with and certified with the Malaysian Organic Standard (MS1529:2001). The Agriculture Department hopes to promote organic farming as it is in demand besides being environment-friendly. Safe and quality organic food is profitable and its production sustainable. Farmers adopt the organic method to increase production, improve the health of consumers and be economically self-reliant. Since the Organic Asia convention held here last year, the Agriculture Department has stepped up its research and development, extended its training programme, and developed new technology locally to support this system. They have opened up to 10 hectares of commercial farming areas within its agriculture research centre (ARC) managed by the private sector in Siburan, Semenggok and the central region of the state. They expected the total SOM farms in the states (outside of ARC) to reach 10-20 per cent. The department created marketing outlets, collaborated with Fama and provided organic farming incentives to farmers. Among the research conducted by the Agriculture Department are introducing a pilot farm within ARC, building a composting factory at the ARC in the north and central region; creating a post-harvest and processing technology; and introducing the Beneficial Indigenous Microorganism (Bimo) technology which has reached stage 3. The department also came out with pest and disease control measures besides botanical research. In agronomy research, the department introduced the use of oil palm empty fruit bunches as mulch and organic manure for dragon fruits; and used paper cardboard mulch for vegetable production on cucumber, long beans and other vegetables. The outcome is still being awaited. The use of cardboard mulch for vegetables is an innovative means of weed control, moisture retention, reduced nutrient leaching and insect control that all lead to reduced labour input. On another note, the department will also collaborate with South Korea. Korea will help locals in research and training to facilitate a selected core group sector development and get organic agriculture enthusiasts to attend a Regional Development Coalition Forum in Korea. The focus of the convention is to identify what can be achieved and delivered by 2011 in the organic agriculture industry. Those who wish to participate in the organic agriculture programme, can write to the director of Agriculture Department at Menara Pelita, Petra Jaya, Kuching.