I’ve been getting a lot of call and emails asking on my opinion about what we/they can do about the recent kenaikkan harga beras. Among the questions:

• Are rice substitutes advisable?
• Is rice bad for your health?
• What can they do?

Why the increase of price?

I’m sure we are all aware or of the recent kenaikkan harga beras by almost 70%. Now for the average comsumer it may not be much (especially if people can fork out RM10 for a single cup of coffee), but nasi adalah komoditi pemakanan penting where any significant long term price increases have effects on everyone, lagi-lagi the low income groups. We The increase of rice is due to a world food supply shortage. Global warming to blame? Probably but also the ever increasing world population. In short, demand outweighs supply.

Why substitutes Won’t Do

1. 1.

   Rice is part of our culture. Ia adalah sebahagian daripada budaya dan amal hidup kita sebagai orang Malaysia (or Asian). It is a vital psychological portion of our lives….take it away and its like someone taking away your home….more or less la but i’m sure you get the point.

2. 2.

   70% sounds like a big increase and it is tetapi realistically speaking, paying 50 cents or even RM1 more for sepinggan nasi won’t make people turn to pasta, kentang or even bread. Rice is still very affordable. Again people are “wasting” multiple times the amount of money on food cravings like chocolates and sweets per year than they ever do on beras. Thats without even talking about cigarettes, alcohol etc.

The solution: “Nasi Separuh Please”

Now to my “Nasi Separuh Please” solution.
How much nasi or rice do we really need per meal? Definitely not the amount mamak shops will pun on your place. Not even half that much. Rice is a great source for energy (carbohydrats) but in actuality you only need a single fistful of rice (segenggam tangan). That’s really it. Think about a nasi ayam rice bowl? Even that is probably too much.
So the “Nasi Separuh Please”, will benefit everyone really -the consumer, the government and yeah probably world rice supplies as well. Let me explain:

1. 1.

   The consumer. Sebagai pengguna, we can apply this “Nasi Separuh Please” rule everywhere – not just at the mamak or while eating out but also at home.

   • Saves You Money. Provided that shops can provide different pricings for “normal serving” and “saparuh serving”
   • Better for your weight.Not that rice itself is the culprit for weight gain tetapi it is the amount of nasi that we eat. So by cutting the calories in half per serving, ia boleh membantu mengelakkan penambahan berat badan yang berlebihan.
2. 2.

   The government and world economy.How so? Why reducing the amount of rice that goes to waste every time we eat a meal. People can never finish a single serving or rice anyhow…so lots goes to waste.

Role of Media and Ministry of Health

Media and government play a major role in enforcing/encouraging mamaks, food stalls etc to provide different prices for servings of rice.

The media and government has the power to publicize but not just that, they play a major role in enforcing/encouraging mamaks, food stalls etc to provide different prices for servings of rice. Otherwise, the consumer won’t see the benefit of paying the same amount for “nasi separuh”.
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