JOHOR BARU: THE Johor government, Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation and Johor Bio-Tech (JBiotech) will develop idle land in the state for biotechnology projects to boost farmers’ income.
JBiotech chief executive officer Wan Amir Jeffery Wan Abdul Majid said several idle land had been identified in Kota Tinggi and Segamat under the Bioeconomy Community Development Programme (BCDP).
The programme is a community-based contract farming that utilises idle land with a buy-back guarantee from private companies.
Wan Amir said the pilot project would see the development of 112ha of idle land in Kota Tinggi for production of sugar and milk, rearing of honeybees and cultivation of herbal products.
“The project is expected to generate an additional income of about RM2.2 billion to the state economy,” he said, adding that the project would involve 150 farmers. The programme was implemented through a partnership with four bio-based companies identified under the BCDP.
The companies are PureCircle Sdn Bhd, The Holstein Milk Company Sdn Bhd, Bio-Alpha Sdn Bhd and Flora Bee Hive Enterprise Sdn Bhd. A memorandum of understanding was inked yesterday between Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation and the four companies. Present was BiotechCorp chief executive officer Datuk Dr Mohd Nazlee Kamal.
“Technology and knowledge transfer components in this project will help the local community to develop skills and market network and directly contribute to achieving higher income for the community,” said Wan Amir.
He said the bioeconomy development initiatives by the Johor government were expected to result in significant contribution of RM10 billion to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2020.
“The biotechnology industry currently contributes about three per cent of the GDP and Johor looks to lead with contribution through various projects and is targeting five per cent of GDP by 2020.”
Wan Amir said JBiotech would also focus on the preservation and conservation of the biodiversity of Johor.
“Malaysia is one of the 12 mega-biodiverse countries in the world and our forests are host to an estimated 15,000 plant species and 185,000 animal species.”
He said the company was working closely with Taman Negara Johor, Univesiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia and Universiti Malaysia Terengganu to ensure the survival of giant clams, seahorses, dugongs, and the flora and fauna in the state.