PEPPER ELITES: Uggah (third left, front row) with Nurmala (second left, front row), Mong (second right, front row) and others with the award winners.
KUCHING: Four farmers from the world’s top four pepper producers were awarded the International Pepper Committee (IPC) Best Pepper Farmer 2012 award yesterday.
The winners were KR.Keshava of India, H Lukito (Indonesia), Mong Rengan (Malaysia) and Nguyen Ba Thinh (Vietnam).
They received the awards from Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas during the opening of the 41st Session and Meetings of IPC here.
The IPC Award 2012 for Excellence in Manufacture of Innovative Products went to Kancor Ingredients P Ltd of India, NIS Spice Manufacturing Sdn Bhd (Malaysia) and Petrolimex Intl. Trading JSC (Vietnam).
AVT McCormick Ingredients of India, Syn Min Kong Sdn Bhd (Malaysia), EOAS Organic P.Ltd (Sri Lanka) and Haprosimex JSC (Vietnma) won the IPC Award 2012 for Excellence in Export of Value Added Pepper Products.
Last year, the IPC received 20 entries from member countries India, which submitted 11 applications, followed by Malaysia and Vietnam (three each), Sri Lanka (two) and Indonesia (one).
Among those present were IPC chairperson Datin Paduka Nurmala Abdul Rahim, who is also secretary-general to Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities, and Assistant Minister of Agriculture (Research and Marketing) Datuk Mong Dagang.