SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE METHODS NEEDED TO ENSURE ENOUGH FOOD IN FUTURE

TAWAU (Malaysia), May 11 (Bernama) -- Sustainable agriculture methods need
to be given importance to ensure enough food supply for the country, said Sabah
Deputy Chief Minister Yahya Hussin.

Yahya, who is also State Agriculture and Food Industry Minister, said the
approach was to realise this via good and systematic management and
agro-diveristy means.

"We know that global food production depends on the environment. Higher
input in agriculture on an industrial scale can elevate food production but it
also contributes to global warning, destruction, biological imbalance, loss of
land fertility and use of much water," he said when officiating the Second
Agro-Diversity and Established Usage Conference 2010 in Sabah, an East Malaysia
state Tuesday.

Yahya said as such all strategies and plans in the future needed to be based
on sustainable methods and take into account climate changes and food guarantee.

The three-day conference is organised the by Malaysian Agriculture and
Research Institute (Mardi) with the cooperation of six other agencies including
Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), the Malaysian Cocoa Board and the Agriculture
Department and is being participated by 300 persons.

-- BERNAMA