PASIR PUTEH: The Department of Agriculture Kelantan has allocated almost RM1 million for replanting old coconut trees in the state, said Deputy Agriculture and Food Industries Minister II, Datuk Dr Nik Muhammad Zawawi Salleh (pix).
He said the move also aims to make Kelantan one of the coconut-producing hubs in the country.
He added that Kelantan is currently the third largest producer of coconuts, after Perak and Johor.
“Kelantan produced 76,673.80 metric tonnes of coconuts last year.
“This move is in line with the ministry's desire to make the coconut industry a new product for the people, after coffee,” he told reporters after visiting the coconut plantation project in Kampung Gong Tengah, here today.
Meanwhile, an entrepreneur, Badrul Amin Hamzah, 26, said that he has been cultivating the Sungai Gulang-gulang (SGG) coconut variety in an area of 4.56 hectares, since 2018.
“Part of the 996 trees have already started bearing fruit. I expect all the trees will start to produce about 100,000 coconuts a year, which can give a return of about RM100,000 a year,” he said.-Bernama
