Palm Oil Producing Countries Convene, Recommend Actions on Crucial Issues
KUALA LUMPUR—Nine world’s major palm oil producing countries convened on 18 November 2019 at the 2nd Ministerial Meeting of Palm Oil Producing Countries (MMPOPC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to deliberate a number of crucial issues in palm oil industry and strengthen collaboration.
The meeting had the presence of several ministers and high-level representatives from Malaysia, Indonesia, Colombia, Thailand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Ghana, Honduras and Brazil. Delegation of Indonesia was led by Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto. The meeting was chaired jointly by Airlangga and Minister Primary Industries of Malaysia, Teresa Kok. Following are recommended actions agreed upon:
- To encourage palm oil producing countries to develop effective collaboration strategy to obtain better prices, particularly at farm level.
- To continue promoting palm oil and to increase use of biodiesel to absorb more palm oil in global market, including to implement mandatory use of B30 in Indonesia starting from 1 January 2020. A test on use of B30 has shown impressive result. Malaysia has reaffirmed its commitment to use B20 while Thailand B10.
- To develop single certification standard of sustainable palm oil by 2020.
- To continue implementing concrete actions to counter negative campaign against palm oil, including seeking justice at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
- To widen the membership of the CPOPC to other countries.
- To improve the livelihoods of oil palm smallholders. Indonesia needs to encourage replanting program as an attempt to yield increased profits. Currently, yield of smallholders’ plantations in Malaysia and Thailand are consistently higher than in Indonesia. *** (Source: Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs)
