INTERACTIVE: What Malaysians love to eat

 By SHYAFIQ DZULKIFLI 

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians love food, but what do we eat the most? 

Rice, the country’s staple food, tops the list. 

Malaysia’s per capita consumption of rice is currently at 79kg, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu was reported saying in September. 

Statistically, this means that on average each person in Malaysia consumes 79kg of rice per year or about 1.5kg per week. 

Apart from rice, data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) offers further insights on other foods we eat a lot of. 

DOSM’s 2023 Selected Agricultural Indicators includes per capita consumption figures for meats, fish vegetables and fruits. 

According to the report, chicken meat came out tops, followed by coconuts and chicken/duck eggs. 

The report states that the country’s per capita consumption of chicken meat stood at 48kg last year, which works out to about 1kg per week. 

The annual per capita consumption of coconuts for 2022 was meanwhile at 24.2kg, while chicken/duck eggs was at 22.6kg. 


 


Chicken lovers 

Malaysia is ranked as one of the world’s top global poultry meat consumers in term of per capita consumption, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) data. 

The FAO, in its report titled OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook, compiled data of a selected group of 35 countries, Malaysia’s poultry meat consumption per capita is greater than countries like Brazil, Canada, Saudi Arabia and United Kingdom. 

The DOSM report’s data shows that chicken meat has consistently held the top position as the most consumed food item by Malaysians. 

Malaysia produced 1.54mil tonnes of chicken meat last year with an average annual production of about 1.59mil tonnes per year (2018 - 2022). 


The king of fish 

Mackerel, comprising Temenong/Pelaling, Tenggiri and Kembung was the popular type of fish, according to the report, with a per capita consumption of 6kg last year. 

Shrimp landed in second place with a per capita consumption of 4.2kg followed by cuttlefish at 2.5kg. 


The real king of fruits 

The versatile coconut, which can be processed into many different products, was the most popular fruit. 

Per capita consumption of coconuts, which stood at 24.2kg was nearly double the figure for durian (12.4kg), with pineapples in third place (12.2kg). 


Champion vegetable 

Round cabbage recorded the highest per capita consumption among vegetables in the report at 7.6kg followed by mustard (sawi) at 4.5kg and tomato (4.4kg). 


 


Of the 52 items listed in the DOSM report, pineapples saw the biggest percentage jump in per capita consumption, rising by 45.2% in 2022 compared to 2021. 

The biggest decline in per capita consumption was meanwhile recorded by mango, which fell 63.6% in the same period. 

The drop is likely due to lower production of the fruit. According to the DOSM report, domestic mango production fell to 9,219 tonnes last year, a decrease by -24.5% as against 2021 production. 



  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

INTERACTIVE: Malaysia’s growing small baby problem

By SHYAFIQ DZULKIFLI PETALING JAYA: The percentage of babies born underweight is going up in Malaysia, with experts describing the trend as worrying. Figures from the Statistics Department show that 12.9% (54,618) of the country’s live births in 2022 were classified as low birth weight (LBW). In 2010 the percentage of LBW newborns stood at 11.2% (54,964) of live births. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines LBW babies as those born with a weight of less than 2,500 grams. According to the WHO, the proportion of infants with a low birth weight is an indicator of a multifaceted public health problem that includes long-term maternal malnutrition, ill-health and poor health care in pregnancy. “Despite Malaysia's status as an upper-middle-income economy, the prevalence of low birth weight indicates that food security remains a substantial challenge for a significant segment of the population especially for pregnant mothers,” said consultant paedi
Read more

Call to action for healthier newborns

Image
By SHYAFIQ DZULKIFLI   PETALING JAYA: One group of underweight newborns is particularly vulnerable to health problems. Known as Small for Gestational Age (SGA), babies who fall in this category are those who weigh less than the 10th percentile for their gestational age. In other words, SGA babies are smaller than 90% of other babies at the same number of weeks since conception. Some experts estimate that SGA babies make up about one-third of low birth weight (LBW) newborns, defined as those born with a weight of less than 2,500 grams. "SGA babies are particularly vulnerable. They are more prone to complications such as hypothermia, infections, respiratory issues, and metabolic problems shortly after birth,” said consultant paediatrician Datuk Dr Musa Nordin.   Datuk Dr Musa Nordin Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Faculty of Medicine deputy dean Prof Dr Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh said SGA births have several underlying causes. “Maternal factors such as poor diet, hypertensive or kidney d
Read more

INTERACTIVE: Turning the tide on Ramadan food waste

Image
Proposed blurb: Awareness is rising on the need to cut food waste, including during festivals as well as Ramadan. We sort through the latest numbers to see if the tide is turning on efforts to reduce the mountainous amount of food that ends up in landfills.   By SHYAFIQ DZULKIFLI PETALING JAYA: Efforts to reduce food waste during Ramadan is getting a boost from consumers who have become more prudent and price conscious when buying food.   This is among the reasons for a 6.5% drop in the amount of food waste in the first two weeks of the fasting month this year compared to the same period last year, said Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp).   The company said 40,723 tonnes of food waste was generated in the first half of Ramadan this year compared to 43,566 tonnes last year – a reduction of 2,843 tonnes.   “Individuals are choosing to shop in a more prudent and modest manner, carefully selecting food items according
Read more