TECHNOLOGICAL innovation is crucial to ensure sustainability and competitiveness of the country's oil palm sector.
Hence, Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) continues to develop innovative technologies to be commercialised, aimed at enhancing the country's oil palm sector.
The commercialisation of MPOB's innovative technologies provides business opportunities to local entrepreneurs, particularly the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which will commercially produce palm oil-based products.
This is in line with the government's efforts in reviving Malaysia's post-Covid-19 economy which focus on assisting the SMEs in generating income in the commodity sector.
MPOB recently inked agreements with four local companies for the commercialisation of its four innovative technologies in fertiliser formulations, plantation mechanisation and palm-based polyols.
These technologies will contribute significantly to the advancement of the country's palm oil industry.
The agreement with FGV Fertiliser Sdn Bhd will see the company producing specific fertiliser formulations for oil palm crops that contain natural sources of nutrients and minerals that will increase the efficiency of nutrient uptake by trees.
This fertiliser, which contains the balanced nutrients, is suitable for oil palm planted on various soils.
It is important for oil palm growers to use optimum balanced fertilisers to increase their yield. The systematic use of this fertiliser is cost effective as it will increase the productivity of fresh fruit bunches and hence, will raise the income of growers.
We also inked an agreement with Palmyra Polyurethane Systems Sdn Bhd for the latter to produce palm oil-based polyol for floorcoverings for indoor and outdoor and sports flooring markets.
This technology, which offers renewable palm-based polyurethane coating to various industries and consumers, will increase and diversify the usage of palm oil in coating products.
The polyurethane coating made from palm oil-based polyol is used to coat the back of the carpet to protect stitched artificial grass.
The palm-based polyurethane coating has good compressive strength and also provides cushioning effect, and serves as a durable product.
It can be comparable to synthetic polyurethane in terms of strength.
Besides, palm-based polyurethane can offer environmental and health benefits such as less exposure to toxic chemicals and irritation from odors.
The agreement signed with Fulle Technik Sdn Bhd is for the commercialisation of technology for a lightweight three-wheeled utility vehicle equipped with a hybrid-powered pesticide spray system.
This technology provides many benefits for the sustainability of oil palm plantation operations such as reducing plantation operating costs, ergonomic design for comfort and safety to users, and can reduce the need for workers especially foreign labours for chemical spraying in plantations.
We also inked an agreement with RZtech Resources Sdn Bhd for the commercialisation of technology for a machine to collect oil palm loose fruits in the plantations.
The commercialisation of this technology will significantly improve productivity and promote better ergonomic working conditions to workers.
This technology transforms the way of collecting oil palm loose fruits in the field from the manual method or hand picking whereby the collected fruits are transferred into a bucket or bag. Trials revealed that in average, the machine was capable of collecting loose fruits around 4.2 to 5.1 kg/min or 1200-1500 kg per day with less than 15 per cent debris.
This technology ensures the collection of loose fruits is more efficient as the loose fruits generally have the highest oil content than most of the attached fruits in the bunch.
Additionally, with no loose fruits left in the field, the income and profit of plantations will increase with better oil extraction rate.
MPOB's invention of the lightweight three-wheeled utility vehicle and the machine to collect oil palm loose fruits will also encourage the involvement of youths to pursue careers in the oil palm industry which is associated with a less attractive work environment than other sectors.
MPOB's technologies available for commercialisation include the production of plant materials, palm fertiliser formulation, disease and pest control techniques, farm machineries, manufacturing technologies and formulation of palm-based food and non-food products.
These technologies benefit industry players as they enhance the productivity and the quality of palm oil and its related products.
As of April 2021, MPOB has developed 705 technologies, of which 31.34 per cent or 221 have been commercialised.
* The writer is the director-general of Malaysian Palm Oil Board
