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Last Updated: 08 February 2024

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PUTRAJAYA (Feb 7): The Ministry of Plantations and Commodities (KPK) will take stern action against any party involved in discriminatory or negative labelling of palm oil.

In a statement on Wednesday, the ministry said it takes the issue seriously and will take strict action in accordance with laws and regulations against importers, traders, sellers, and related parties who commit such offences.

"The Multi-Agency Enforcement Force (MAEF) conducted inspections at several premises in Selangor under the Trade Descriptions (Prohibition of Use of Statement, Expression or Indication) (Oil Palm Product and Palm Oil Goods) Regulations 2022 on Jan 26.

The penalty for a violation of the above regulations is a fine of up to RM220,000 or imprisonment of up to five years.

“During the inspections, it was found that some food products in these establishments were conspicuously labelled with discriminatory labelling against palm oil (DLAPO), for example with statements such as 'no palm oil' or 'without palm oil',” it said.

These shops included those selling local products such as baby food and imported food labelled DLAPO.

It is important to note that some importing companies placed stickers on the investigated products labelled "Imported and distributed by".

"During the inspections, the shop managers were informed of the ban on the use of the label and asked to clear the shelves until further action is taken.

"Warnings have also been issued to the involved premises to stop selling products with discriminatory labeling against palm oil and to remove existing products from the market immediately," said the statement.

KPK said follow-up inspections will be conducted to ensure the same problems are not repeated and warnings will be issued to prevent enforcement actions by MAEF that could lead to fines and product seizures.

 According to KPK, such labelling techniques give consumers the negative impression that the use of palm oil is harmful to health if the product contains palm oil.

"Apart from that, the action also damages the good reputation of palm oil industry in the country and violates the principles of fair and transparent trade," it said.

https://theedgemalaysia.com/node/700193

Sumber : The Edge Malaysia

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Last Updated: 08 February 2024

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KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 7 ― The Ministry of Plantation and Commodities intends to make Egypt an essential part of its plan to expand Malaysia's palm oil exports to the African continent through the Suez Canal Economic Zone.

Its minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said economic cooperation in the palm oil sector between Malaysia and Egypt was discussed in his meeting with the Egyptian Ambassador to Malaysia Ragai Tawfik Nasir on Monday at his office.

"Egypt is a strategic country for our palm oil industry because palm oil makes up almost 90 per cent of Malaysia's exports to Egypt.

"Egypt has a population of more than 110 million people,” he said in a post on X today.

He also said that both countries are exploring a partnership in palm product marketing strategies involving government-linked companies along with the cooperation of private players in both countries.

In addition to Malaysia’s strong position as palm oil exporter to the country, Egypt is strategically located to be a potential gateway to other North African countries, he said. ― Bernama

https://www.malaymail.com/amp/news/malaysia/2024/02/07/johari-ghani-malaysia-to-work-with-egypt-to-expand-palm-oil-exports-to-africa/116822

Sumber : Malay Mail

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Last Updated: 07 February 2024

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KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 6 ― The Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) has an important role in ensuring the sustainability of Malaysia's oil palm industry so that the fate that befell the country’s rubber industry will not be repeated here, Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said.

He said Felda, being the largest owner of plantation land in the country at 800,000 hectares needs to fully utilise its strength by increasing production and focusing on the downstream sector.

 "Try to imagine. If we are not focused on the downstream industry for the next 15 to 30 years, the palm oil industry will go down the same path as the rubber industry. I don't want to see that.

"We were the largest rubber producer in the world at one time. Today, we are the main producer of rubber products but we import natural rubber from Vietnam and Thailand because we do not have enough of it.

The strange thing is, we have 420,000 ha of rubber trees belonging to 290,000 smallholders,” he said in his keynote speech at the Felda 2024 Symposium here.

Malaysia produced 19.5 million tonnes of oil palm in 2013 while Indonesia produced 26 million tonnes. Malaysia’s production dropped to 18.5 million in 2023 while Indonesia’s grew its output to 46.5 million, he said.

Johari said Indonesia uses half of it for biodiesel production while Malaysia exports 15 million tonnes. He said the country's main oil palm players produced an estimated 20 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) on a per hectare basis and suggested Felda raise its production to more than its 2023 production of 16.49 tonnes per hectare.

Therefore, he said it is important for Felda to consolidate its land assets and complete its infrastructure as best as possible.

As an example, if Felda were to produce 18 tonnes of FFB per hectare, its total yield would rise to 14.4 million FFB and the agency could become the largest producer with 2.8 million tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO), he said.

"Imagine, if the price of palm oil is RM4,000 per tonne, and the estimated cost is RM3,000, we make a RM1,000 profit. Overall, we will make a profit of RM2.8 billion.

"So, we have to learn from Felda's success first, and we put together a strategy for the next 20 to 30 years. I believe the 800,000 hectares belonging to Felda, if we are good at it, the fifth and later generation will be proud to be part of Felda,” said Johari.

He also envisioned Felda settlers to organise their land into large clusters and to fully operate their assets to produce downstream products.

"So, this oil palm industry is very important to the country. If Felda wants to be socially responsible, it is only 'sustainable' if it can make a large profit. No (company) can make a social contribution to society if it does not generate income,” he said. ― Bernama

https://www.malaymail.com/amp/news/malaysia/2024/02/06/johari-ghani-felda-must-ensure-oil-palm-industry-does-not-share-same-fate-of-rubber/116641

Sumber : Malay Mail

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Last Updated: 26 January 2024

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KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 24): Palm oil output in Malaysia, the number two supplier, could rise 5% this year after the government allowed plantations to hire foreign workers, said Joseph Tek, chief executive of the Malaysian Palm Oil Association.

The admission of new workers potentially means that an additional 5.2 million tonnes of fresh fruit bunches can be harvested, the top growers’ group said in a statement. That translates into 1 million tonnes of crude palm oil, Tek said.

The extra tonnenage would also generate revenue of close to RM4 billion, bringing “significant relief” to the industry, which is grappling with a substantial shortage of 40,000 workers, the group said. The news pressured benchmark palm oil futures in Kuala Lumpur trading.

The government has been trying to reduce reliance on cheap foreign labor across many industries including manufacturing, construction and plantations, and seeks to regulate admission processes to prevent any issues like forced labor, worker exploitation and human trafficking.

In March last year, the country temporarily suspended the application and approval process for foreign workers under a quota system in order to speed up the entry of workers already approved.

Chronic shortage

Malaysia’s palm oil industry is heavily reliant on foreign labour. A chronic shortage of workers resulted in revenue losses estimated at RM20 billion in 2022 and continued to curb growth in output last year.

Palm oil production in Malaysia totaled 18.55 million tonnes in 2023, and earlier this month the Palm Oil Board, which regulates the industry, predicted output of 18.75 million tonnes for this year. That’s less than half the supply from top producer Indonesia, where output has expanded steadily in recent years.

The association represents over 40% of the oil palm area in Malaysia. Members include some of the top plantation companies such as Sime Darby Plantation Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, IOI Corp and FGV Holdings Bhd.

Palm oil futures in Kuala Lumpur climbed as much as 0.9% to RM3,985 a tonne on Wednesday, before paring gains to RM3,955 by midday.

The higher output estimate is capping the rally, said Gnanasekar Thiagarajan, head of trading and hedging strategies at Kaleesuwari Intercontinental. The move to allow more foreign workers “adds to supply woes,” he said.

https://theedgemalaysia.com/node/698490

Sumber : The Edge Malaysia