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Providing good seedlings

MALAYSIA, the world's second-largest producer and exporter of palm oil, produces high-quality palm oil and related-products. The country's palm oil products have gained the trust of consumers domestically and internationally.

Our high-quality oil palm products are derived from good seedlings as a result of the government's research and development (R&D) efforts.

Malaysian Palm Oil Board's (MPOB) R&D breeding programme focuses on developing high-quality planting materials, such as those with special traits that can enhance the production and quality of crude palm oil (CPO).

Our tissue culture programme is by far the most viable approach to propagate elite palms. Tissue culture is a clonal propagation process for the mass production of elite palms. To date, MPOB has successfully commercialised three clones, known as Clonal Palm Series (CPS)1, CPS2 and CPS3. CPS1 was officially commercialised in 2017.

CPS1 is a superior clone that produces higher oil yield compared to seed-derived palms. It produces fresh fruit bunches (FFB) of more than 30 tonnes per hectare per year and oil to bunch of 30 per cent. The potential oil yield ranges from eight to 10 tonnes per hectare per year. In addition, its high oil yield, very low mantling rate and ease of cloning have made it MPOB's standard clone.

The CPS2 is designated for high-density planting of 200 palms per hectare, compared to the normal density planting of 148 palms per hectare, due to its short rachis length. Hypothetically, a trial implemented with CPS2 would produce FFB of 32.7 tonnes per hectare per year and an oil yield of 8.86 tonnes per hectare per year. Owing to its extraordinary features, MPOB commercialised the CPS2 in 2018.

As for CPS3, our latest addition, yields from the field evaluation of this clone for seven consecutive years, when planted at a normal density of 136 palms per hectare, recorded an impressive 37.5 per cent oil to bunch and yield of oil per hectare of 11.32 tonnes per year.

Therefore, CPS3, as a high-yielding clone, is a material of choice for estates and millers.

CPS3 was developed through a collaboration with Kulim (M) Bhd and introduced during the MPOB transfer of technology webinar in 2020.

Using CPS1, CPS2 and CPS3 will improve yields per hectare, the most sustainable way to increase productivity due to limited land for expansion.

The oil palm nursery sector produces high-quality oil palm planting materials for growers. In Malaysia, there are 838 nurseries licensed with MPOB, of which 361 have been registered with Code of Good Nursery Practice for Oil Palm Nurseries (CoPN).

Of the 361 registered nurseries, 212 have been certified. CoPN ensures that only high-quality oil palm seedlings are produced.

Premises that apply for CoPN certification will get benefits such as technical knowledge, proper management and new technologies used in oil palm nursery operations.

Oil palm nursery is an important sector in the palm oil supply chain where oil palm seedlings are produced for the cultivation of palm trees.

Hence, ample supply of oil palm seedlings is required in line with the needs for new planting and replanting of oil palm trees.

Ensuring an adequate supply of high-quality oil palm seedlings throughout the country is challenging. Hence, it requires planning and consistent production of the oil palm seedlings by nursery operators.

In this regard, the new oil palm planting and replanting activities are not expected to encounter problems due to sufficient supply of oil palm seedlings.


The writer is the director-general of Malaysian Palm Oil Board

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