WHETHER in peacetime or war, the issues of food security and food sufficiency have always taken centre stage in the affairs of humankind.

       Starving an enemy into submission is still a valid war strategy. And a hungry man is an angry one even in peacetime.

       Smart governments ensure that the bellies of the bottom 40% or B40 are full lest they take to the streets and start a revolution.

       It is no surprise then that there are increasing calls to refocus our efforts towards strengthening food security and self-sufficiency in the face of spiralling prices of the staple foods that end up on our dining tables as the proverbial three square meals of the day.

       The rakyat must be assured of a steady supply of good food at affordable prices.

       The general price of food is expected to rise higher than the 4% registered in the first four months of the year if supply conditions are not resolved quickly. But global supply chains remain disrupted.

       The strain on households is mitigated by subsidies and price controls. But these cannot be long term tools to control prices of imported foodstuffs and farm inputs.

       Malaysians are alarmed at the prospect of paying way more for food, having never suffered hunger or deprivation.

       The very old will tell you it is horrible. Like during the Japanese occupation of Malaya.

       We were heavily dependent on imported rice given that most of the cultivated land was given over to an export crop, rubber. Subsistence farming the old fashioned way took up the rest.

       Logic dictated that food for the burgeoning millions of workers in the rubber and tin industry should be produced locally.

       But our rice industry was small and inefficient.

       Between 1930 and 1940, we produced only 35% of our rice needs.

       Efforts were made to step up production but the increase in areas under irrigation failed to even keep pace with population growth.

       Back then, the experts said it made sense, as opposed to thinking of long-term food security, to import rice from the rest of Asia, Myanmar included.

       Then, fearing war, a stockpile of a year’s supply was built up.

       The Japanese conquerors used most of it to feed their soldiers.

       Supplies ran low. The humble tapioca was our ironic “just-in-time” food to ward off starvation.

       Having learnt our lessons from further food shortages and rationing in the post-1945 era, the agricultural sector of the country steadily rose to become a pillar of the economy contributing a 28.8% share of the gross domestic product by 1970.

       As of 2020 the share of the agricultural sector’s contribution stood at 7.4% given the galloping growth of our industrial economy.

       But despite this, our markets were always well-stocked with every kind of greens and fruits both local and imported. Poultry, meat and eggs together with fish, crabs and prawns were readily available at any day of the week.

       And for the careful shopper, whether rich or poor, prices were affordable. We ate to the point of becoming a manifestly obese nation.

       The statistics on production, exports and imports of the foods consumed in Malaysia and the derived self-sufficiency ratio (SSR) and the import dependency ratio (IDR) show that apart from mutton and beef and rice and wheat, our farm sector has made steady progress.

       We are nearly self-sufficient in most foods. And today, 65% of our rice needs are produced locally.

       Then in quick succession came the devastation of Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

       An inflationary spiral across the globe has laid bare our weaknesses and vulnerabilities in both food security and food self-sufficiency. No country has been spared.

       The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FOA) price index averaged 159.4 points in March this year, increasing by a whopping 12.6% in a single month.

       Access to affordable food i.e food security has reared its ugly head. And because we have been importing a good portion of the key agricultural inputs like fertilisers, chemicals and feedstocks, there is little we can do to control prices other than to set artificial ceilings and even resort to the rather dramatic gesture of banning chicken exports to Singapore.

       Clearly such action is tantamount to panic and politicking driven by the fear that the hungry masses will demand their pound of flesh whether it be fish or fowl.

       Long-term planning

       The knee-jerk reactions and populist actions are never a good substitute for sound policy formulation and long term strategic planning.

       Truth be told, we have been left exposed by runaway food inflation.At this juncture, it is vital we draw a clear distinction between food security and food self-sufficiency.

       The former refers to access to affordable and nutritious food come hell or high water while the latter is about countries having an agricultural sector that can produce three square meals for its citizens without the need to import food on a large scale.

       As a country we are not going hungry. But others are.

       In these countries there is no food security on account of the rich-poor divide, misgovernance and lack of planning. And they are also not self-sufficient on account of drought or war or pestilence.

       In addition the price of farming inputs have shot through the roof. Eating cheap has come to an abrupt and rude end.

       It must also be noted that self-sufficiency by itself is not a guarantee of food security.

       Especially in countries where the rich-poor divide is vastly skewed or where the transport and storage infrastructure is poor and undeveloped resulting in bottlenecks and wastage.

       People in remote and distant parts can suffer from food insecurity even in a land of plenty.

       On the other hand, countries can enjoy food security without being self-sufficient.

       Sophisticated supply chain

       Singapore, producing little food itself, is ranked top in the global food security index by creating a sophisticated food supply chain that is coupled to transparent and well-thought regulations that are strictly enforced.

       The efficient middleman, not the approved permit or AP man, rules the roost.

       To chart a way forward we must relook at the fundamentals.

       A useful starting point is to recognise that our daily three square meals is a combination drawn from five broad categories of foods, categorised by the FAO as follows: cereals, vegetable oils, dairy, meat and surprisingly, sugar.

       Note that “fruits and vegetables” are not reflected as a category.

       Cameron Highlands is our star in fruit and vegetable production. It need shelp not harassment in producing more. As for fish stocks, mismanagement and malfeasance have reduced our catch in the seas.

       We risk running out of fish through overfishing and the use of fish bombs. There is also the suspicion that a fish cartel is fixing prices. We must fix them.

       Any policy formulation to strengthen food security must take into account that even over the long term there is little possibility we will be self-sufficient in rice or in wheat flour.

       The answer lies in securing long-term supply contracts with producers or in building a stockpile that will cushion us against “inflationary shocks”. But holding stockpiles is a costly affair.

       As to the category of “vegetable oils” we have little to fear being the second largest producer of palm and palm kernel oils.

       In the “dairy” category we are making great strides through the entrepreneurship of local farmers who now produce some 60% of our needs of fresh milk but the same cannot be said of mutton and beef production. We remain significant importers of the same.

       Clearly, self-sufficiency in the meat segment cannot be realised by funding politically-linked enterprises and persons.

       Instead we should use the funds to support agricultural enterprises run by real farmers as opposed to make-believe ones who cannot distinguish a goat from one dressed in sheep’s clothing. Diet diversification including vegetable proteins may be useful.

       As for sugar, it’s a tricky call.

       Our modern diet of cakes and fast foods coupled to a high-energy lifestyle does require importing vast quantities of sugar (2.13 tonnes) but a way forward must be found to ensure it does not lead to an unhealthy population.

       The time has come to consider a sugar-tax on certain foods. To be poor and obese is simply illogical.

       Given our landmass and year round rain and sunshine, we must cultivate what grows best here.

       Not sturgeons or sugarcane. Farming is a tough business and government policy should reward the ones who can stand on their own two feet. Undoubtedly, we have good farmers.

       Witness that durian has become a major industry without the need for a Durian Research Institute!

       We need to ensure the produce of the earth can be consumed by all who put in an honest day’s work. We must therefore aim for food security and not food-sufficiency. As a first step we should do away with APs for imports.

       A scientific approach to farming must become the order of the day. Farmers who can help us put affordable food on the table must be funded.

       We must become more efficient producers and distributors of fmarketood now, not later. There is no other way forward!

       M.R. Chandran is a 60-year veteran of the tree crop plantation industry and IRGA Sdn Bhd chairman. The views expressed here are the writer’s own.