Low (sixth left) in a photo call with MPOB Miri office personnel and others.
MIRI: The ‘Karnival Sawit’ (Oil Palm Carnival) which was held at MJM Palm Oil Mill recently was part of the continuing efforts of Borneo Bajamas Marketing Sdn Bhd and MJM Palm Oil Mill Sdn Bhd to promote knowledge enhancement and skills upgrading to local farmers.
Organising chairlady Lee Siew Foong said the three-day festival was organised by Borneo Bajamas Marketing Sdn Bhd and MJM Palm Oil Mill Sdn Bhd as part of their corporate social responsibility programme for the local community.
“This carnival aims at strengthening the relationship between local oil palm entrepreneurs and to help them to improve their skills, productivity, and income to ensure a better quality of life in line with the government’s objective of supporting the palm oil industry via the Sayangi Sawitku (Love My Palm Oil) campaign,” she said.
Among the programmes carried out during carnival were talks by Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) on Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification and the use of chemical fertilisers, among others.
In his speech read by his special assistant Lawrence Low, Senator Alan Ling, who is a director of MPOB, talked about the implementation of the Biodiesel B20 programme for the transport sector which was launched by former Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail last month.
Ling disclosed that the National B20 Biodiesel Programme for the transport sector would be expanded nationwide in June 2021.
“The B20 biodiesel programme, which involves blending 20 per cent palm methyl esters with 80 per cent diesel, is being implemented in phases since January, starting in Langkawi and Labuan.
“The implementation of B20 will boost domestic consumption of palm oil by 534,000 tonnes annually,” said Ling, adding that the programme is expected to provide sustainable support for palm oil demand, hence ensuring price stability for the commodity.
“Continuous and sustainable development of the country’s oil palm industry will also help 650,000 smallholders to boost their economy,” he added.
Ling pointed out that the mandatory implementation of B10 biodiesel programme in the transport sector began on Feb 1, 2019 while B7 biodiesel programme for industrial applications was made mandatory on July 1, 2019.
“Malaysia’s oil palm plantations covering over six million hectares can produce 20 million tonnes of palm oil annually and export to more than 160 countries worldwide, thus providing employment to over three million people including smallholders nationwide.
“The programme is also one of the government’s initiatives to achieve the target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent by 2030,” he added.
The carnival was participated by various industries involved in oil palm enterprises such as hardware and automobile companies, chemical and fertiliser manufacturers and others.
Also present were MJM Palm Oil Mill Sdn Bhd executive directors Dato Sri Lau Hieng Su and Dato Pui Yuh Tzer, and MPOB Miri office head Khairul Abidin.