Farmers in Ba Kelalan are on the right track to produce environment-friendly rice using a chemical-free farming method called System of Rice Intensification (SRI). Some 27 farmers with more than 30 paddy plots from Long Langai, a village in the Ba Kelalan highlands, recently harvested their second batch of fragrant Adan rice from pilot plots covering almost three acres, against last year’s 1.3 acres, according to WWF-Malaysia. The harvesting period took place between Jan 9 and Feb 3. WWF-Malaysia in a statement said it has been working closely with farmers in Long Langai to promote sustainable rice farming using SRI since 2018. “The pilot project started out with 12 farmers and after the first harvest in January last year, 15 more farmers were convinced to participate in using SRI this harvesting season. “Some of the farmers shared that their yields have doubled compared to the traditional farming method that they had been using for many years,” said the statement. This environment-friendly rice production project is made possible through a three-year partnership with CIMB Islamic Bank Berhad.

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