KUBANG PASU: Approximately 1,500 hectares of padi fields managed by the Farmers' Organisation Authority (LPP) in Kedah were submerged during last week's floods, resulting in an estimated loss of RM13.5 million.
LPP chairman Datuk Mahfuz Omar said 972 padi farmers in 11 Farmers Area Organisations (PPKs) suffered hefty losses as most of their crops were nearing harvest.
The floods, which struck seven districts in the state last Monday, devastated the padi fields.
"The figure is a rough estimate. Assessments on the damage sustained by the farmers are still ongoing.
"Except for PPK Kuala Ketil, most of the submerged crop were between 85 and 100 days of age, meaning they were ready for harvesting. Based on my checks in the affected areas, most of the crops were destroyed by the floods.
"The farmers are in a dilemma. They need to pay to rent harvesting machinery to prepare for the next planting season, but millers are only willing to offer half the market value for the damaged crops," he told reporters after presenting food basket contribution by the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry to flood-affected farmers in PPK Asun, Kampung Paya Tok Teh today.
Mahfuz said PPK Asun was among the worst affected areas, with 20 out of 27 units were hit by the floods, comprising 367 ha of padi fields.
"In PPK Asun here, 189 padi farmers are affected. This is particularly devastating because PPK Asun is one of Kedah's highest-yielding PPKs, producing 1.8 metric tonnes of padi per relung (0.3 ha).
Mahfuz urged the affected farmers to cooperate fully with the ministry during the flood damage assessment process to ensure they receive government compensation.
"We hope the Agriculture Department will speed up the assessment process. I also urge the farmers to cooperate fully," he said.
There are 19,611 farmers cultivating over 34,000 ha of padi fields under the purview of LPP in Kedah.
Earlier, Muda Agricultural Development Authority (Mada) chairman Datuk Dr Ismail Salleh said nearly 5,900 ha of padi fields under its purview in Kedah and Perlis were submerged by the floods.
He said Pendang is the hardest hit district, with the losses from the affected padi fields surpassing losses recorded during the 2010 major floods in Kedah.
Mada oversees over 100,000 hectares of padi fields in Kedah and Perlis, with Kedah alone as the largest rice producer in the country, supplying over 40 per cent of the domestic demand for the staple food.
It was also reported that National Padi Farmers Brotherhood Organisation (Pesawah) chairman Abdul Rashid Yob had estimated that the total losses of padi crop in Kedah and Perlis at over RM50 million since some 30,000 metric tonnes of crop were wiped out by the floods.