Malaysian Journal of Sustainable Agriculture (MJSA)

The pandemic has profoundly disrupted the stability of the agri-food supply chain, primarily due to the inconsistent supply reaching the market caused by movement restrictions. This economic downturn is influenced by losses along the business supply chain and has prompted a closer examination in this study. The focus is on the specifics of post-harvest losses of watermelons, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 recovery phase. The watermelon is selected for scrutiny due to its status as the second-largest high-value crop in SSL after papaya (increasing by 142.3% in 2022). This choice indicates that the local production sufficiently satisfies domestic demand and is also available for export. The study reveals that losses contribute to almost 69.4%, resulting in a reduction of 2.0 metric tonnes from the pre-pandemic situation, where losses were around 1.0 to 1.2 metric tonnes. These losses are attributed to delays in distribution, especially at the farm level, due to distribution restrictions and a shortage of labour for harvesting. Overall, these findings aim to provide insights for industry players on how to handle future crises by developing backup plans to reduce losses.