Continuous heavy rainfall in Malaysia over the last few weeks has depleted the crop yield for vegetables across the country, said, farmers. The dip in the supply of vegetables by around 20 to 30 percent would inevitably result in price hikes for vegetables such as spinach, okra, long bean, and chili, they added.
The president of the Malaysian wholesaler vegetable association, Mr. Steven Lee, said that the prolonged rain has impacted crop-producing areas in Melaka and Cameron Highlands and vegetable markets such as in Kuala Lumpur. “Overall, the non-stop rain has depleted the supply. It seems like supply overall has dipped between 20 and 30 percent, especially for farms that are unsheltered and out in the open. This means that output for vegetables such as spinach, bok choy, long beans, and okra will be hit,” said Mr. Lee, who operates a farm in Melaka.
He added that the weather this year has been “unpredictable,” with the overall rainfall seemingly higher than usual recently. He noted that there had been torrential downpours almost daily over the last couple of weeks. “Typically, during the third quarter of the year, between July and October, the weather will be good, and there will be a supply rebalancing. Farmers will get good crop yield, and prices will fall,” said Mr. Lee. “But this year, we have not seen this at all, and prices are increasing and likely to continue to rise,” he added.
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