The value of Malaysia’s crude palm oil (CPO) exports rose by RM3.31bil or 37% year-on-year during the first quarter of 2017.
Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong said the increase was due to the higher palm oil price, despite the volume of export being almost the same.Between January and March 2017, Malaysia exported 3.65 million tonnes of CPO, generating RM12.25bil.During the same period last year, the country exported 3.69 million tonnes or RM8.94bil worth of CPO.
“Although the export volume remained the same, we saw a 37% increase in revenue from CPO exports due to the higher price. This is a very good sign. We had targeted a 5% increase for the year, and we have already seen a huge increase during the first quarter,” he added.He was speaking to reporters after launching Sime Darby Plantations’ pre-cleaning system and animal feed ingredient called Purafex at the company’s kernel crushing plant here.Mah said the new system by Sime Darby, which was funded by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), could save the country millions of ringgit, as it could cut down on its imports of animal feed ingredients.
Sime Darby Plantations launched the country’s first successful system to use a by-product of palm kernel to generate an ingredient to be used in chicken feed.While the palm kernel oil industry has been contributing to the animal feed production sector for years, the by-product called palm kernel cake (PKC) has been used mainly in the feed for cattle, as it is unsuitable for poultry due to its high fibre content.The latest innovation, he said, was a game-changer for the animal feed production industry, as the company could now produce PKC that was high in protein and suitable to be used in feed for poultry.Livestock farming is a billion ringgit industry in Malaysia, whereby feed and nutrition constitute over 25% of the total livestock production cost.