Malaysia’s cocoa beans not enough for local needs
KOTA KINABALU: The production of cocoa beans in Malaysia is insufficient for local grinding needs.
Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Chan Foong Hin said worldwide cocoa beans production, including in Malaysia, has dropped due to various factors such as hike in the price of agriculture input, as well as attacks by caterpillars and diseases.
“But the demand for cocoa beans worldwide is rising and has indirectly contributed to the drastic hike of world cocoa bean prices,” he said when launching the Seminar of Sustainability in Cocoa Supply Chain through Advance Technology: Consultation with Industry on Cocoa Advanced Technology 2024 (CICAT2024) at the Le Meridien hotel on Tuesday.
In Malaysia, the current price of cocoa beans is RM17 per kilogramme, compared to RM8 per kilogramme in 2022.
Chan said that Sabah’s 3,572 hectares of land planted with cocoa is the largest in Malaysia.
He said that area in Sabah contributes 58 percent of the total area planted with cocoa in the country.
He also said there is an increase of 138 hectares in the areas planted with cocoa in the country between the year 2022 and now.
The area of Malaysian cocoa plantations is 6,123 hectares compared to 5,985 hectares in 2022, he said.
“The increase is the result of the new cocoa planting programme implemented by the Malaysian Cocoa Board,” he said.
Chan also said that about 89 percent of the cocoa plantation areas in Malaysia are cultivated by smallholders.
He stressed that cocoa is an important commodity in Malaysia, contributing RM8.2 billion to the nation’s income in 2023 and RM7.8 billion in 2022.
“This contribution is from the income of exported semi-finished cocoa products such as cocoa fat and cocoa powder,” he explained.
Chan said that efforts are being made by the Malaysia Cocoa Board (LKM) to increase cocoa productivity.
“One of the strategies to increase production is to increase the efficiency of garden management using mechanisation, digital data, IoT (Internet of Things) technology and others,” he said.
He added that the recommendation of the CICAT2024 seminar coincides as a platform for experts and industry players to share information on the latest technology which in turn gives an impression of the positive potential in the development of the cocoa sector.
The use of technology for ‘smart farming’ or smart agriculture is hoped to attract the interest of estate or farm operators and new generations to get involved in cocoa cultivation, he said.
Chan added that due to the realisation on the importance of mechanisation and technology in commodity farm management, his ministry has applied and obtained the mechanisation programme funding which is channelled to agencies under the ministry, which includes LKM.
“LKM was allocated RM3 million for the period of 2024 till 2025 for this purpose,” he said.