The young and restless … farmers

Farming is not perceived as a glamorous vocation and is generally shunned by the younger generation But times, they are a-changing ROY SEE WEI ZHI talks to two young and strapping farmers who prefer a life outdoors to one stuck in endless meetings, in stiff shirts and ties

IANNIS Irfan Dhil Akbar turned his back on a well-paying job in Australia as a retail bank officer to grow fruits and vegetables in Malaysia

It was not a decision many young people would make but Iannis, 37, did not let that deter him

“I do not know whether it is because I love the outdoors, or I hate being in the office, but one thing is for sure – I needed a change”

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He started farming in Johor four years ago, and has never looked back

Iannis took six months to acquire all the basic necessities before he could plant the first seed

“Finding land was the hardest. richard mille I spoke to many people and attended many interviews with my proposals before I finally got a 12ha plot”

Among the first crops he planted were bananas and lemongrass

Things were looking up until some wild boars made their way into the farm and destroyed 90 per cent of his banana plants

He planted guava trees in place of the bananas but they, too, were completely ravaged by wild animals

“I was naive and stupid to think that farming would be easy I thought it would be straightforward

“To have all your work erased overnight, twice, was difficult. schaffhausen watches “

It was a big loss, but Iannis persevered

Iannis now farms over 20 hectares, growing various crops such as chilli

“Diversity is the key to success Different crops produce at different months

“By growing a wide variety, I can make sure my farm is productive all year round”

But Iannis’ “diversity” did not end there He also branched out into other business sectors related to the agricultural industry

With help from the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry, he was able to concoct a mix of organic materials to be used as fertiliser

Instead of buying fertiliser for his crops, Iannis created his own by cultivating microbes to increase the soil’s productivity

“That way, I save a lot of money”

Another way to save was by cutting down on the cost involved in the distribution process

By bypassing the middleman, Iannis was able to supply his produce to local markets and sundry shops at very competitive prices

But before he could sell his products, he had to make sure there was a demand for it

“It was the basic supply and demand rule You need to grow things people need, if not everything would go to waste”

Iannis said it was a must for people in his line to be proactive and always be on the lookout for new markets

To separate himself from the rest of the pack, he said marketing was also a very important aspect

So when people thought of any crop they needed, they would come to him

“Value-adding” That is the term used by Iannis to describe his marketing strategy

“For example, instead of selling entire bunches in gunny sacks, I repackage them into packages of different weights and sizes People can identify my brand when they see it

“But this is something I did not worry about when I started It was getting the whole project off the ground that was hard

“Now that I am at this phase, I consider it a milestone”

`I love the peace’

AS a young boy, Soh Shangrong used to follow his father on his farm visits to Karak

There, he played with the farm animals, took a dip in the chilly waterfalls and fed the fishes in the ponds

Soh, a city boy, eventually graduated with an accounting degree from Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (better known as RMIT) in Australia

He started work as a corporate debt restructuring consultant for a company in Kuala Lumpur He did well and bought a house However, there was an ever present void in his heart

Four years ago, when he was 22, he finally found out what was missing — it was the serenity he felt in the farm as a young boy So, he returned to his father’s plantation

There were many reasons why Soh wanted to become a farmer

“I wanted to spend more time with my father and I really love the peace I found at the farm

“I wondered why there were not many young people in this business and asked my father if I could venture into farming. Replica Handbags After all, I am young and have the energy”

Soh’s father was sceptical at first But when Soh was determined to go ahead, his father allotted a small part of his farm for his son to nurture and oversee

Soh started by growing bananas on 28ha “Bananas produce once a year, which is relatively fast compared with other crops. (Levis ). That’s why I chose them You know how impatient young people can be,” he said with a laugh. (Puma).

But that was not the only reason. (Dsquared2 T-shirts & Shirts). Soh researched many different crops intensively before embarking on his venture

“Many people think farming is easy, that you just plant the seeds and they grow That’s not true”

He said there were many factors that had to be taken into account, such as the soil type, location of the area and marketability

A farmer had to understand all this to know what crop was viable

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