A nipah palm stalk is carefully prepared for tapping, a traditional process that requires twisting and handling at the right intervals before the sap begins to flow. (Bernama pic)

KANGAR: When Jamaludin Abd Rahman first looked at the muddy patch of land in Kampung Bunga Emas Barat, it was hardly promising farmland. The 0.3ha site had been left largely unused because its soil was deep, unstable and difficult to work.

“Previously, this was abandoned swamp land. If you walked through it, you could easily sink into the mud, so machinery such as tractors and rice harvesters could not enter,” the 63-year-old recalled.

Jamaludin, who hails from Jerlun, Kedah, initially dug a pond there to rear catfish. But he began thinking more seriously about what the land could support.