Home vegetable farming could help overcome shortage, price hike, say experts

SHAH ALAM - Encouraging students to grow their own vegetables could help overcome shortage, price hikes say experts.

Consumer Associtation of Penang (CAP) Education Officer and Natural Farming Trainer N.V Subbarow said students are encouraged to grow vegetables at home to lower their cost of living.

By doing this, Subbarow said Malaysia would not face food shortage or price hikes in the future.

"If students start growing their own vegetables, our country will not face any shortage or price increase problems on vegetables.

"Growing your own vegetables also protects the environment with no pollution and chemicals.

"Further, the students will know the names of vegetables and they can also grow herbs which can cure ailments," he reasoned.

Subbarow also said agricultural education must be introduced as part of the learning subject in schools.

"The agriculture education or green garden activities must begin in every primary schools, secondary schools, universities, private universities and teachers training colleges," he said.

Commenting further, Consultant Public Health Specialist Professor Dr Hematram Yadav lauded the move to educate students in vegetable planting activities.

"It is a good idea to encourage children to grow their own vegetables as skills learned during the process and students try to be self-sufficient on vegetables.

"You can also get fresh, cheap and pesticide free vegetables by growing them by your own," he said.

Meanwhile Professor of Epidemilogy and Public Health Professor Dr Moy Foong Ming shares various of advantages by growing vegetables in home.

"We can reduce problems of food insecurity among the low income groups, as home grown vegetables may be cheaper than purchased vegetables.

"Intake of pesticides can be reduced and growing our own vegetables promotes good health. "It is also environmental friendly," she said.

When asked on the possibility to bring this move into national level, Moy said it should be implemented with the support of local government.

"This should implement on national level with support from the local government such as providing training, subsidy for seeds and materials needed for gardening.

Talking on the environmental and health benefits of growing own vegetables, Moy said it reduces carbon footprint on earth.

"Growing own vegetables reduces carbon footprint since we don't need to transport vegetables from a far location.

"However, this benefit will only be observed when this is practiced by high proportion of people, when the purchasing of vegetables reduced substantially," she said.