Palm oil plantations have been displacing fruit orchards across the Malaysian state of Selangor as the profit margin on palm oil rises, reports The Star.
The state government is worried about the drop in fruit production, and is trying to encourage farmers to keep their orchards.
State Agriculture, Modernisation, Natural Resources and Entrepreneur Development committee chairman Yaakob Sapari said they needed to reach a stable balance between fruit and palm oil production.
“Fruits from Selangor actually have a good demand if it is marketed direct from the farms,” he said.
Wholesalers and retailers had driven the shelf price of the fruit up, he said, which meant the produce was out of reach for many Malaysian locals and had reduced demand.
Mr Sapari says to help fruit growers get good returns, Selangor will organise a fruit bazaar in Shah Alam and look at value-adding programmes.
Palm oil demand is rising worldwide, as consumers look for products containing non-hydrogenated solid vegetable fats rather than unhealthy trans-fats, and the increasing use of palm oil in the production of biofuels.
