Malaysia halts new oil palm plantations to preserve forest cover

Published 2024년 8월 18일

Tridge summary

Malaysia is banning the establishment of new oil palm plantations in forest areas to maintain a forest cover of 54% and enhance biodiversity protection. The country will also prohibit palm fruits harvested from deforested areas from being processed and will prohibit factories from exporting or selling products that contain such fruits. The government will mandate the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification for all producers to assure buyers of the products' sustainability and quality. Despite the economic benefits of the palm oil sector, which includes contributing to 3% of Malaysia's GDP, generating over RM100 billion in export revenue, and providing around one million jobs, the industry faces criticism and negative propaganda from some Western countries regarding its sustainability.

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Original content

SANDAKAN (Aug 18): Malaysia has pledged to halt new oil palm plantations in forest areas to support sustainability and maintain its current forest cover of 54%. Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said that palm fruits harvested from deforested areas will be barred from entering palm oil mills. "Factories accepting such fruits will be prohibited from exporting or selling their products. I believe we have enough oil palm plantations. “We want to maintain our forest cover at 54% to enhance biodiversity protection, including safeguarding orangutans," he said during the World Orangutan Day 2024 event here on Sunday. He emphasised that this policy has been communicated to industry players through various previous engagements. Johari stressed the need for Malaysia to ensure that all palm oil exports meet sustainability standards to prove the country’s commitment. He noted that Sabah alone has 1.5 million hectares of oil palm plantations. Despite this, the ...

Source: Theedgemarkets