By Sofia Nasir
KUALA SELANGOR, Nov 29 — The state made history by harvesting its first onion crop, totalling 32 tonnes, cultivated over an area of eight acres at the Selangor Fruit Valley (SFV) in Bestari Jaya.
State executive councillor for infrastructure and agriculture Izham Hashim said the onions, named Bawang Rose Ehsan, were produced using Internet of Things technology and cultivated over a 135-day planting period.
“This project spans a total of 25 acres at SFV, with the first phase covering eight acres. For this initial phase, we successfully produced four tonnes of onions per acre.
“We utilised high-quality seeds from India that are resistant to diseases,” he said during a press conference following the introduction of the first harvest of Bawang Rose Ehsan at SFV today.
Also in attendance were Selangor Agricultural Development Corporation chief executive officer Datuk Mohamad Khairil Mohamad Razi, and Agriculture Department director-general Datuk Nor Sam Alwi.
Meanwhile, Izham said the high demand for onions prompted Selangor to begin its own cultivation to reduce dependency on imports.
All the onions produced will be sold at the Ehsan Mart and Sri Ternak supermarkets, targeting a RM32,000 profit per acre of cultivation.
“We were informed that every citizen in this country consumes 1.2 kg of onions annually. Therefore, we are making an effort to produce our own onions, even though there were initial doubts about sustaining onion production,” he said.
On February 28, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu said the government aims to produce 14,470 tonnes of onions by 2026, involving 1,374 hectares of land nationwide.
He said the initiative under the Onion Cultivation Development Project aims to achieve a 30 per cent reduction in onion imports by 2030.
[caption id="attachment_381607" align="aligncenter" width="1157"]
State executive councillor for infrastructure and agriculture Izham Hashim (centre) observes the collected harvested Bawang Rose Ehsan onions during the first harvest of the crop at the Selangor Fruit Valley in Bestari Jaya, Kuala Selangor, on November 29, 2024. — Picture by MOHD KHAIRUL HELMY MOHD DIN/MEDIASELANGOR[/caption]
