ANCHOR COMPANY PERSPECTIVE AND ROLE IN ENHANCING THE MALAYSIAN SEED INDUSTRY

ANCHOR COMPANY PERSPECTIVE AND ROLE IN ENHANCING THE MALAYSIAN SEED INDUSTRY 
Lim Kiang Ping
Green World Genetics Sdn. Bhd.
Email : kiangping.lim@gwgenetics.com
Agriculture industry is important to a country; through the development of the seed industry the agriculture industry can be enhance in order to achieve food security and self-sufficiency. As the anchor company appointed under EPP 14, Green World Genetics Sdn. Bhd. (GWG) has taken actions to overcome some of these challenges and help to build a better seed industry in Malaysia. Malaysia has an estimated population of 31 million people and a seed industry worth roughly RM 50-60 million. More than 95% of the seeds used by local growers are imported. Hence there is a need to breed and also strengthen the local seed production system.Breeding is a tedious process and it takes years to develop a new variety. GWG has currently embarked into breeding varieties for local needs. To achieve this, 5 plant breeders, more than 30 seed producers, 20 agronomists and 7 technical sales persons have been deployed. Resources such as land, funds, germplasm etc., are important for the breeding program. GWG has established strategic partnership and linkages with both governmental institutions and private sectors. Policy and regulation is another important issue for the seed industry. Policy is the direction set by the government to develop the industry whereas regulation refers to the rules that govern seed industry. The food supply chain is a vital element in enhancing the seed industry. The supply chain in Malaysia is made up of seed distributor/dealer, growers, packer/processor, trader, retailer and consumer. The direction for seed breeding should be based on the requirements on each component in order to benefit and harmonize the entire supply chain. To date, despite being involved in agriculture for a very long time, the Malaysian seed industry particularly in the vegetables sub-sector is considered very young. GWG, as the anchor company shoulder the responsibility of not only producing high quality seeds but also to foresee future challenges and advise the policy makers to lead our seed industry into a more prosperous era and increase the country’s GDP. 
Keywords: Green World Genetics, seed industry, food supply chain.

Posted by:
M Anem,
Senior Agronomist (NSAM Members)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
(24 August 2016)