KOTA KINABALU: AirAsia Group Bhd's airasia farm is planning to set up a warehouse in Sabah in the second quarter of this year.
The 3-in-1 warehouse of about 557 sqm will be used as a freezer storage, office and training space for farmers and small and medium enterprises in Sabah.
airasia farm chief executive officer Joanna Ibrahim said the warehouse would be able to accommodate more fresh produce and could be used as a quality control medium.
"This can ensure the freshness of a product in addition to being able to overcome supply disruptions and losses.
"Besides that, the storage warehouse can ensure the safety of food that is to be distributed to customers.
"Apart from Kota Kinabalu, we also plan to build similar facilities in Sandakan and Tawau in the future," she said when met at a media session last night.
Despite being launched in June last year, airasia farm, which is a business-to-business e-commerce platform, had only started to operate in Sabah since November in efforts to turn the state into an agriculture export hub.
To date, the platform has registered 142 farmers, 21 breeders, 34 fishermen and dry food producers, businesses from various industries including importers, restaurants, supermarkets, hotels and wholesalers.
According to Sabah airasia farm general manager Murain Shunmuganathan they had exported more than two tonnes of dried seafood from Tawau to Kuala Lumpur in the last two months.
"By leveraging the Airasia's strength on logistics and cargo, we found new markets in Klang Valley, Penang and the central region to market products from Sabah.
"The airasia farm also foresees the competitive market for frozen seafood and premium fruits such as avocado and pomelo (to be promoted)."
The platform would also focus on the selling and distribution of Harumanis mango in peninsular Malaysia and Sabah.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan who was present praised Airasia's efforts for further expanding its business into agriculture.
Jeffrey, who is also the state Agriculture and Fisheries minister, expressed hope for more local fruits in Sabah such as Balinese lemons, "tarap" and "bambangan" to be marketed in the peninsula and even internationally in the future.
