The Ministry of Plantation and Commodities of Malaysia aims to focus on marketing the nation's products globally

The Ministry of Plantation and Commodities of Malaysia is planning to focus on research and development (R&D) and marketing the country’s products internationally in the re-tabling of Budget 2023 on 24 February.  Deputy prime minister and plantation and commodities minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said on RTM's programme on 1 February, that the government needs to consult overseas expert and make sure Malaysia’s products are accepted globally.

This comes as the country heavily relies on imports from overseas countries at the moment, according to Fadillah. He also said the government will also look into the importance of community farming among smallholders and new products, such as cannabis.

He added that Malaysia has introduced the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification scheme at the international level and there is also the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) so the country will be able to market its products globally. Fadillah said Malaysia will be in talks with Indonesia next week to alert the European Union.

Furthermore, the government will also introduce standards based on international levels to achieve all sustainability commitments, meaning there will be no deforestation within the country, but the migration from coconut to oil palm plantation is still a concern. "What may be challenging is how these smallholders can meet the standards that have been set,” he added.

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Back in December last year, The EU Council and Malaysia Parliament reached a provisional deal on a proposal to minimise the risk of deforestation and forest degradation associated with products that are imported into or exported from the European Union.

"As a producing and trading country, Malaysia is deeply concerned over the developments of the EU Deforestation-Free Products Regulation, targeting commodities including palm oil, timber, cocoa, and rubber. This unilateral initiative is detrimental to free and fair trade, and could result in adverse impacts on global supply chain. Some aspects of the risk-assessment process of the Regulation are counterproductive to commitments to curb global deforestation and run the risk of disincentivising producing countries," the official statement read.

The regulation will place additional burdens on Malaysian palm oil exporters to the EU market, specifically additional traceability requirements and data that must be provided to end-customers based in the EU. Countries will be ranked as "high risk", "standard risk" or "low risk" and restrictions on commodities will be either more or less stringent, based on this ranking.

(Photo courtesy: Berita RTM's YouTube)

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