KUALA LUMPUR — The floor price of paddy will be raised to RM1,500 per metric tonne, from RM1,300, effective Feb 16, Agriculture and Food Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu said.
The increase will not affect the price of local white rice, which stays at RM2.60 per kg, he told the Dewan Rakyat today.
However, this will cost the government RM150 million in subsidies over the next six months, to maintain the price of local white rice for consumers and ensure supply in the market, he added.
“Raising the floor price will mean increasing government subsidies, because we don’t want to burden the consumer. We want to help the paddy farmers but at the same time, not impact the consumer.”
He also assured farmers that his ministry, together with the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry and the Finance Ministry, are currently looking at extending the diesel subsidy under the Budi Madani programme to more people working in the paddy industry.
Currently, diesel subsidies are available mostly to the logistics and transportation sector, while agricultural workers eligible to receive the diesel subsidy under the Budi Agri-Komoditi programme must have an annual turnover of between RM50,000 and RM300,000.
Mohamad’s announcement in the Dewan Rakyat today follows Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s promise to rice farmers last week that the government would set a new floor price in response to their demands.
The new floor price is still short of the RM1,800 per tonne requested by farmers who have said the current floor price of RM1,300 is unsustainable as it does not cover the cost of cultivation.
Rice farmers have said that due to their complaints, rice millers had started purchasing paddy from them at RM1,500 per tonne, but after covering costs, this was still insufficient to help farmers earn a sustainable living. – February 13, 2025