Cultiveat People: Nazira, Farm Assistant
Nazira’s journey as a farmer started at home, “I grow chili, brinjal, and just yesterday, I bought some kangkung seeds for my mini farm! Kangkung belacan, I love it!”, says our cheery farm assistant, with unmistakable glee.
“I started growing pandan and curry leaves first, cause my mom used to buy them at pasar, but I rasa macam tak berbaloi. I geram so I tanam sendiri lah…since then I plant different kinds of veggies and decided to study agriculture.”
At university, Nazira learned about Cultiveat through her lecturer. “When I saw the photos, I knew it was the right place for me. I like things to be clean and tidy, and the farms were so clean – no dirt, no mud, don’t even have cangkul!”
Starting out as an intern, Nazira is now Cultiveat’s farm assistant, handling important daily tasks like harvesting, transplanting, temperature control, and more. “I learn everything here, and they guide us on each step. We also get to grow small batches of veggies for experiment, to learn how to grow better quality ones.”
Nazira feels the need to make a difference when it comes to food safety, having been exposed to the harms of unscrupulous practices within the industry, “My lecturer tunjuk video orang guna growth hormones and colouring. I didn’t want this. I nekad tanam sayur yang selamat untuk dimakan.”
“I feel comfortable bringing Cultiveat veggies home for my family because I am the one who grew them, and I know exactly what goes into them – nothing! Kadang-kadang, I show off our veggies masa shopping kat pasar,” Nazira says, giggling.
Nazira hopes to build her own farming business one day. She aspires to grow more safe foods for the local community, so people no longer have to fear what they consume. In the meantime, she cautions, “Always take care, and be careful of what you eat. Buat research and know where your food comes from.”
Favourite veggie dish (besides Kangkung belacan!): Buttermilk broccoli.
