Petaling Jaya - Malaysia has secured the backing of India, the world’s largest palm oil importer, in combating the anti-palm oil campaign propagated by Western nations.

At a roundtable in New Delhi yesterday attended by plantation and commodities minister Johari Ghani, the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers Association (IVPA) voiced unequivocal support for Malaysia’s stand.

Johari was on a two-day trip to the Indian capital city from July 17 to 18.

IVPA president Sudhakar Desai said the ongoing anti-palm oil campaign poses a threat to the commodity, an essential good for the 1.4 billion consumers in India.

He called for targeted campaigns in response, aimed at shining light on the sustainability and economic benefits of palm oil, to combat concerns of climate change and deforestation.

Another approach, Sudhakar said, would be to work with think tanks and research institutions to highlight unbiased studies about the commodity.

The findings of these studies should then be used as part of marketing and advocacy campaigns to build the trust of consumers in palm oil, the head of the association in India said.

Speaking at the roundtable’s dialogue session, Johari said palm oil was the most efficient edible oil in terms of productivity and land use.

He said oil palm trees occupy less than 8% of the total area of land dedicated to crops, yet produce 32% of major seed oil.

Due to its low cost, high-yielding nature and consistent availability, palm oil boasts the highest yield among vegetable oils, producing 3.3 tonnes per hectare of oil compared to soybean (0.5), sunflower (0.8), and rapeseed (0.8), he said, according to a press release.

Johari said India would continue to be a key trade partner for Malaysia, which remains committed to supplying the South Asian country with high quality and sustainably produced palm oil.

The European Union Deforestation-free Regulation (EUDR) introduced in November 2021 is aimed at limiting deforestation caused by the consumption of agricultural commodities and products around the world.

The EUDR lists palm oil as one of the commodities that drive deforestation and forest degradation through the expansion of agricultural land.

In April, Johari urged the EU to end its arbitrary and unjustifiable discrimination against palm oil, and to act fairly in enforcing its strict environmental and sustainability laws and targets.

Yesterday, the minister said Malaysia’s palm oil exports to India would continue to rise in line with the growth of India’s middle-class consumer base.

Malaysia’s exports of palm oil and palm oil products to India last year totalled 3.3 million tonnes, valued at US$3 billion (RM14 billion), or 13% of Malaysia’s total palm oil exports.

Source: Free Malaysia Today