KLUANG, Dec 7 — The Sumosack ergonomic pineapple harvesting basket – designed specifically for pineapple harvesters – can help reduce their ‘musculoskeletal’ problems which affect their bones, muscles and joints.

Hailing this smart fruit harvesting basket, Malaysian Pineapple Industry Board (LPNM) director-general, Mohd Khairuzamri M. Salleh said this innovation by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in collaboration with LPNM was to replace the rattan basket, hence increasing the pineapple output.

“The use of this ergonomic basket or ‘lanjung nanas’ which is still in the trial period, is a contribution from SME Corp in collaboration with Yayasan Inovasi Malaysia under the High-Impact Programme (HIP-6), which to me is a good move or creation with its creator taking into consideration the safety and health of the pineapple farmers.

“This basket has an important role in making the farmers’ task of harvesting the fruit easier and lighter while it also has safety features to protect their backbone,” he said when met at the Parit Ghani Group Pineapple Collection Centre, Kampung Parit Gantung, Parit Haji Basri, here, today.

Earlier, Mohd Khairuzamri was accompanying Agriculture and Food Industries Deputy Minister II, Dr Nik Muhammad Zawawi Salleh when visiting the project.

During the visit, 50 Sumosack pineapple harvesting baskets were handed out to the chosen pineapple farmers in the state.

Also given out was the Economic Stimulus Package incentive comprising a set of mechanised sprayers for each of the 576 farmers and worth a total of RM1.3 million.

Meanwhile, MAFI through LPNM is targeting to increase the pineapple cultivation areas in the country to 20,000 hectares by 2025 from 17,000 hectares in 2020.

LPNM will also increase the areas for growing the MD2 variety of pineapple from 15 per cent currently to 50 per cent in order to meet the high demand for the fruit in the domestic market and for export.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency