This 4-part series of #BP2024 stories published by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) in conjunction with the Agriculture Census 2024, will present all the facts you need to know about agriculture in Malaysia through quizzes, games and infographics.
Can you guess how much food each Malaysian eats every year?
Let’s start with a small test on how much Malaysians consume their favourite food items.
Guess by drawing a line on the charts below. Once done, click the button below the chart to compare with the answer.
If we exclude coconuts, which are largely used for cooking and its juice, durian is Malaysia’s favourite fruit.
According to a 2020 study, we consumed far more than other durian producers such as Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam, and even neighbouring Singapore. Although China is the largest durian buyer, making up 91% of the global durian market in 2023, the average Chinese only consumed 0.21kg of durian in 2016.
Enough about durian, let’s move on to the next question.
The reason behind this new trend, according to Malaysian Pineapple Industry Board (MPIB) chairperson Sheikh Umar Bagharib Ali, is the increasing awareness among Malaysians about the benefits of pineapple as a “super-fruit”.
“This trend has been increasing since the Covid-19 period, and people believe that it can be a cure for sore throat and kill the Covid-19 virus. This is not scientifically proven, yet we know that pineapple is a good source of Vitamin C. Plus, it is good for our digestive system,” he said when contacted.
He added that since the introduction of the new premium variety called “MD2”, Malaysians consume more pineapple as it is sweeter, less acidic, and not 'lidas' (tongue-cutting sensation).
When it comes to the consumption of chicken meat, we are again regional leaders. According to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in 2021 (latest data available) Malaysia was ranked 17th globally and number one in Southeast Asia in terms of how much chicken meat is available to each Malaysian on average. Although it doesn’t directly measure how much chicken we ate, it is a good indicator.
Data from the UN agency shows that an average Malaysian ate 47.6kg of chicken meat in 2021. Our neighbours don’t come close.
The demand for round cabbage is so high that the local production can’t keep up. Although local farmers have been producing more round cabbage in recent years, they can only fulfil about half of domestic demand. In 2022, slightly more than half (55%) of our round cabbage was imported.
There are food items with high consumption that cannot be fulfilled by local production such as chilli, coconut and mango. For those products, we are highly dependent on imports and the government needs to intervene to control their prices which might fluctuate due to external factors such as geopolitical problems and climate change.
The government is also working hard on boosting local production of such food items to reduce dependence on imports and improve food security but that discussion is for another article.
Sharing our best food with the world
On the other hand, some of our agricultural products are so good that we sell them to other countries, especially those exceeding domestic demand.
Most Malaysians know that we are one of the top exporters of durian. The Musang King variety from Malaysia is so good that durian enthusiasts in China called it the “Hermes of durian”. Its superior taste was backed by a study in 2019 that found Malaysian durian is much preferred over Thai durian by consumers in China.
However, you might not know that Malaysia also exports other types of fruits and vegetables. In 2022, we exported almost the same amount of watermelon as durian in terms of weight. Before 2022, the export of watermelon was always higher than durian! Even tomato was exported more than durian before 2021. However, we need to remember that durian was sold at a much higher price than watermelon and tomato.
The other top agricultural products exported by Malaysia include cucumber, banana, papaya, pineapple and lettuce.
What about the products that we import? And how reliant are we on imported food? Do we produce enough food to feed all Malaysians? These are the questions that will be addressed in our next article. Follow #BP2024 and stay tuned!
Wonder where such data came from?
The data about Malaysian food consumption that you just read was collected through a government initiative known as the Agriculture Census. It is a survey conducted by the Department of Statistics Malaysia that covers all groups and families throughout Malaysia that carry out agricultural activities including crops, livestock, fisheries, forestry and logging.
As you can imagine, conducting a nationwide data collection exercise requires a lot of human resources, time and a huge budget. Hence it was only carried out three times since the formation of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963. The last one was conducted in 2005,19 years ago! The next Agriculture Census #BP2024 will happen this year from July to October.
You might have heard or even participated in another nationwide census, the Population and Housing Census of Malaysia (MyCensus 2020), which was conducted in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is different from the Agriculture Census as the latter only covers those who conduct agricultural activities while MyCensus covers all residents in Malaysia.
You might wonder why the government needs such a gigantic exercise. That’s because the data and information collected will be used by the government to plan and develop our country.
The government will use the results from the Agriculture Census to implement policies that aim to increase our agricultural productivity through technical innovation, sustainable best practices and other approaches.
Information and data collected from the census such as crop varieties, land ownership and farm size will help the government make informed decisions on how best to support stakeholders.
With effective policies informed by reliable data, Malaysians can enjoy a fresher, cheaper, more stable and sustainable supply of food.Chief Statistician Dato’ Sri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin told the media last December that “the main information that will be produced from the census is the demographics of agricultural holdings, land area, irrigation system, workers, agro-tourism and financing facilities.
It includes income and asset spending, agricultural practices and the use of technology, the digital economy in marketing, as well as aspects of food security.
According to Economy Ministry Secretary-General Datuk Nor Azmir Diron, such information will help lawmakers formulate better policies on food security by collating data on agriculture and agro-based industries.
In years when there’s no census, relevant agencies still collect key agricultural statistics such as production data but it is the Agriculture Census that provides a complete and timely picture of the Malaysian agricultural sector.