Malaysia’s Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) is calling on smallholders and idle landowners in the East Malaysian state of Sabah to rent or jointly develop their land with the agency to cater to the growing demand for rubber seedlings.
Risda says that currently Sabah needs no less than 2 million seedlings/year and it is able to push production at the existing nurseries to 60,000 seedlings/month.
Though Sabah currently has 20 fully operational nurseries, including those jointly developed by land owners and Risda through contract farming agreement, rubber tree seedlings needing at least eight months to mature before they can be transferred to farms, and demand is expected to continue to grow as more smallholders start to plant rubber. Risda has this year allocated RM300,000 for renting nurseries. (RJA)