Generational gap widening in agriculture sector

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is grappling with a widening generational gap in its agriculture sector, despite increased government funding and push toward modernisation.
According to a Bernama report, Khazanah Research Institute stated that only 15% of the country's agriculture workforce is under the age of 40, while the average age of padi farmers now stands at 60. This figure raises red flags over long-term food security.
In a written response to theSun, The Agriculture and Food Security Ministry acknowledged that perceptions of agriculture as 'low-income, labour-intensive and lacking status' continue to deter youth participation.
The ministry cited that the combination of financial barriers, land access issues and limited exposure to modern techniques as core challenges.
'Agriculture is frequently associated with traditional, physically demanding labour and low financial returns.
'As a result, many youths consider agriculture unattractive compared to urban-based careers in technology, services or finance, despite the increasing potential of modern agribusiness and agrotechnology,' the ministry said.
It stated that even if youths manage to start agricultural businesses, they face difficulties in accessing stable markets, value chains and reliable post-harvest infrastructure, such as cold storage and logistics.
'Without efficient supply chain networks or market linkages, many young agropreneurs struggle to achieve profitability or scale-up. This creates a discouraging cycle of low returns and limited growth prospects,' the ministry said.
Despite the challenges, government initiatives, such as the Young Agropreneur Programme, receive moderate participations. Since 2021, 3,242 youths have participated in the programme, receiving a combined of RM67 million in support, including startup grants and access to business advisory services. The average combined monthly revenue among participants stands at RM17.5 million.
theSun was able to reach out to two of the programme participants over the last few years. One such voice on the ground is Mohd Hafiz Nordin, 41, who runs an aquaculture business in Bestari Jaya, Selangor, under ARC Berkat Agrofood Sdn Bhd.
He has been in the industry for 19 years, long before the programme was formalised.
'I got involved in agropreneurship before the programme was even officially launched,' Hafiz said.
Hafiz received RM30,000 in initial support, which he used to expand his tank-based fish farming operations.
However, he stressed that money alone is not enough.
'Grants help, but if you give youth money with no structured mentoring, they'll follow theory. When theory fails, so does the business,' he said.
A similar sentiment is echoed by Farah Hidayah Chu Ahmad, 39, who received the programme assistance in 2020 for her sambal -based food processing business in Selangor.
'While the RM20,000 grant I received at the time was essential in scaling up my production, attracting youths to my operations has been difficult.
'Raw material costs are high and production margins are tight.
'We can't offer RM3,000 salaries to new workers when the business itself is unpredictable.'
In response to the manpower gap, the government has increased its allocation for the programme to RM25 million in 2025, up from RM20 million the year before.
The start-up grant, which offers non-repayable in-kind support, was revised to provide up to RM30,000 per participant.
A new scale-up initiative was also introduced, providing up to RM50,000 to help existing youth agropreneurs expand their agribusiness ventures.

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