Roland Sagah Wee Inn (seated in the middle) at a media session after the conclusion of his ministry's session at the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly (DUN) - PHOTO: NSTP
13 May 2024
KUCHING: Sarawak is expected to no longer rely entirely on rice as a carbohydrate source but instead to make sago an alternative.
Minister of Education, Innovation, and Talent Development, Datuk Seri Roland Sagah Wee Inn said research is currently being vigorously conducted by CRAUN Research Sdn Bhd, which sees sago as potentially replacing rice.
He said the initial research conducted by scientists from the Sarawak government-owned company since last year found that sago starch almost matches the taste of rice.
"The research being conducted will provide us with an opportunity to address food security issues as well as to find other carbohydrate sources to replace rice.
"Efforts by CRAUN Research Sdn Bhd will also diversify sago products," he said.
He said this in his winding-up speech at the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly today.
He further stated that further research is still being conducted by CRAUN Research Sdn Bhd to assess the real potential of sago as a primary carbohydrate source in the future.
Sago cultivation in Sarawak began in the early 1880s and has since become one of Sarawak's major agricultural trading commodities.
The sago industry in Sarawak is currently dominated by smallholder sectors, contributing 92 percent of the estimated area of 32,329 hectares of planted areas.
Sarawak is the world's largest exporter of sago flour, with a total of 37,884 metric tons of sago flour valued at RM78.29 million exported to Peninsular Malaysia and Japan in 2020, accounting for 51.27 percent and 35.47 percent of the total export volume, respectively.
The main sago areas are in the Mukah, Betong, and Sarikei regions, with smallholder sago farmers still relying on traditional planting approaches.
