Deputy Minister of Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail during the Joint Venture Company Signing Ceremony Between the Sarawak State Farmers' Organisation and Zedtop Resources Sdn Bhd in Kuching on Tuesday. Photo TVS
KUCHING, April 8: A new joint venture company, Agro Global Sdn Bhd, has been established as a strategic partnership to boost Sarawak's agricultural sector by strengthening the supply chain and expanding market access for local farmers.
Deputy Minister of Food Industry, Commodities and Regional Development, Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail said the Sarawak State Farmers' Organisation (PPNS) will collaborate with Zedtop Resources Sdn Bhd (ZRSB) in establishing the joint venture company and it will be based at the Collection Processing and Packaging Centre (CPPC) Tarat.
He said the joint venture company is a pilot project to spearhead efforts to transform Sarawak into a competitive player in the regional and global food markets, with specific export targets including Singapore and Hong Kong.
“This is a pilot project for the Sarawak government and PPNS has been given special responsibility to start it for products that are special to Sarawak, such as midin, terung asam, dabai for export.
“That is why PPNS has been looking for a strategic partner and we have collaborated with Zedtop Resources Sdn Bhd and we have an area in Tarat that is special for this CPPC,” he said.
He said this during the Joint Venture Company Signing Ceremony between the Sarawak State Farmers’ Organisation and Zedtop Resources Sdn Bhd in Kuching on Tuesday.
The CPPC in Tarat, he said, will be transformed into an export hub equipped with various facilities including offices of related agencies and is scheduled to start operating in July 2025, with full-scale activities expected to be implemented by mid-2027.
He said the signed agreement would be an important moment in starting the phase of completing the supply chain for local agricultural products to be processed before being exported.
“We will transform the CPPC into an export hub with all the facilities and there will be a Customs office, agricultural offices for the export process and we expect within three to five months to provide the facilities and by the end of this year we will be ready.
“So today is a very important moment which includes completing the supply chain for agricultural products from planting then we process it and then we will export,” he said.
Agro Global will use the Collection, Packaging and Processing Centre (CPPC) in Tarat, which will function to collect, grade, process and repackage agricultural produce from Sarawak farmers to meet strict international food safety standards and regulations.
The effort aims to increase the global appeal and marketability of Sarawakian agricultural products by adding value to local crops and ensuring export availability.
In addition, the initiative will empower local communities by fostering entrepreneurship through incubation programmes, creating business opportunities for smallholders, supporting suppliers and service providers at various levels of the supply chain, as well as creating job opportunities for local residents.
