Smallholders not worried about impact on FFB prices

KUALA LUMPUR: As long as there are buyers, oil palm smallholders remain unperturbed over Europe’s discrimination against the crop.

Niam Saw Yok, 65, a smallholder in Sabak Bernam, said the European Parliament’s move to phase out palm oil in biofuels by 2021 would not jeopardise his 12.14ha estate, as he understood that Malaysia’s export destinations included other places like Pakistan, India, the Middle East and China.

“I am unaware that Europe is importing a large amount of palm oil, but this is not the first time I am hearing the boycott issue being brought up. The Americans did it once, long time ago, and it was because they wanted to protect their own soybean production. So, I’m not surprised by this new trend.”

He said it would not have too big an impact on crude palm oil price as a tonne of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) was valued at between RM400 and RM500.

“The price is favourable compared to earlier years when a tonne could only get you between RM70 and RM80,” he said.

On whether he would be applying for the palm oil certification to promote the sustainability approach for the industry, Niam said he was taking a wait-andsee approach.

Another smallholder, Musa Omar, 80, from Jengka, said he believed the ban was part of the agenda to harm the palm oil industry.

He said FFB prices were unstable and had impacted smallholders.

For Abdul Jalil Aziz, 62, securing buyers for his FFB was important.

“I don’t know whether the EU ban will impact me or not. As far as I am concerned, we also sell to China, India and Pakistan.”

On the sustainability certification, Jalil said getting it was not as important as the issue of selling the FFB and the price of palm oil.

The government has allocated RM130 million as incentive for smallholders to obtain the Malaysia Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification. Mandatory implementation of the MSPO would take place by the end of next year.

Only four per cent of 244,622ha of plantations had obtained the certification since it was introduced in 2015.