KOTA KINABALU – Sabah is aiming to achieve the internationally-recognised Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standard to protect the state palm oil sector’s resilience.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the state will put in place a policy to attain the Jurisdictional Certification of Sustainable Palm Oil (JCSPO) and the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) towards gaining the RSPO standards.
“Consistently and over the years, the state has introduced and implemented various initiatives to ensure the palm oil sector remains a key economic driver.
“The state will continue to pursue these efforts to increase the crude palm oil (CPO) yield per hectare through precision agriculture, farm mechanisation, control of pests and diseases and more.
“At the same time, the focus will also be made on leveraging technology and innovation to increase productivity and competitiveness of the oil palm downstream sector,” he said in his keynote address at the inaugural East Malaysia Palm Oil and Lauric Oils Price Outlook Conference and Exhibition at the Magellan Sutera Resort here today.
His speech was read by Sabah Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun.
The price of CPO in Sabah rose by 26.8% to reach RM5,372.50 per t for the period of January to August 2022 compared to RM4,505.50 per t last year.
Hajiji said that the increase in CPO prices has led to the rise in the world soybean oil price and labour shortage in the plantation sector.
The production of CPO in 2021 in Sabah stood at 4.36 million t, of which 4.02 million t was exported to the United States, China, the European Union and South Korea.
Between January to August this year, the export of palm oil and other palm-based products amounted to 3.04 million t compared to RM2.98 million t over the same period last year.
The export value had come to RM16.94 billion compared to RM11.08 billion over the same period last year, said Hajiji.
Hajiji also noted Sabah has nine refineries processing 7.48 million t a year, with two biodiesel factories generating 300,000 t of palm-based biofuels annually. – The Vibes, October 12, 2022
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