KUALA LUMPUR: Visitors will have the opportunity to buy 5 kilogrammes (kg) of rice at an auction price as low as RM10 at the Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism Exhibition (MAHA) 2022 which starts this Thursday until August 14 at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS).

Agriculture and Food Industries Ministry Paddy Industry Development Division secretary Azman Mahmood said the RM10 rice auction can be found at Laman Agro-Food Padi (Paddy Food Agro site) during 'happy hour' which is randomly announced during exhibition and after the period ends, the rice is sold at a price of RM11 for 5kg.

In addition, he said his division aims to educate primary school students from all over Putrajaya, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Negeri Sembilan about the process of planting to harvesting rice at Laman Agro-Food Padi.

"One day we invited three schools (to the site), we want to directly educate the new generation about the continuity of food safety because rice is a basic food that everyone needs to know.

"There are some students who have never seen the physical appearance of rice, they only know how to eat it. We aim to educate these students because they will be leaders in the future and agriculture provides great job opportunities," he told Bernama recently.

In addition, Azman said his division also showcased the integration of rice crops with udang galah (giant fresh prawn) farming to increase the income of rice farmers without reducing rice yields.

"The integration of rice and udang galah will give rice farmers more income, as udang galah is RM50 per kg, but if they grow rice it will be RM1.20. We plant rice twice a season, while the prawn farming is continuous," he said.

According to Azman, Laman Agro-Food Padi also provides a padi gallery that showcases the evolution of rice cultivation methods from using the sickle to the use of new technology including drones to help facilitate the spraying of insecticide to control of insects and diseases.

He said a replica exhibition of padi straw that have recycled to produce fodder, has been made into a 'port' for visitors to take photos at Laman Padi.

Azman said his division will also launch a new Internet of Things (IoT) that can identify the type of soil and weather suitable for planting rice seeds on August 7.

"We are trying to bring the new generation to get involved with the rice industry because rice is what people eat every day. Even if there is a war or an economic crisis, it is still going on. The rice sector is not only involved in rice cultivation and there is much more that can be done, with drones, production, fertilizer and machinery," he said.

The Laman Agro-Food Padi is one of the eight agricultural sites, namely the Fisheries Site, the Livestock Site, the Herb and Vegetable Site, the Fruit Site, the Pineapple Site, the Machinery Site and the Floriculture Site that will colour MAHA 2020 with the theme of 'Food Security for the Future'.

-- BERNAMA