PUTRAJAYA: The call for Agriculture and Food Security Ministry personnel to grow their own food at home was merely an encouragement and not a directive, the ministry has clarified.
In a statement on Friday (March 13), it said the initiative is meant to foster a culture of self-sufficiency as part of a shared responsibility to strengthen national food security, especially given increasingly challenging global uncertainties.
"This initiative is not a directive, let alone a compulsion.
"It is a suggestion and an encouragement for all ministry personnel to collectively drive the culture of planting and producing our own food," it said.
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The ministry noted that the call to cultivate home-based farming is not a new concept, but a consistent message championed by its Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu since he took office.
It stressed that the minister views food security as something that must go beyond government planning.
"Food security is not just a policy on paper, but a culture that needs to be brought to life in our daily routines," the ministry added.
To prove his commitment to the cause, the ministry highlighted that Mohamad has been "walking the talk" at his own official residence.
According to the statement, the minister currently rears tilapia fish and grows onions and other crops in his own compound.
"This effort is not merely symbolic. It is a clear message that each of us is capable of contributing (to food security), even on a small scale," it said.
In a joint press conference with government spokesman Datuk Fahmi Fadzil and Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan earlier in the day, Mohamad said ministry officers who live in landed houses should start planting quick-yielding crops such as chillies, eggplants and chives.
