Malaysia and India to deepen cooperation on palm oil

The Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) and the Indian Vegetable Oil Producers Association (IVPA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate further on palm oil use and development, the IVPA said in a press release issued Thursday.

The MoU, which was signed on the sidelines of the ongoing Malaysia International Agricommodity Expo & Summit (MIACES) 2022 in Kuala Lumpur, is expected to expand cooperation in areas of mutual interest and broadly promote the development and use of Malaysian palm oil and Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certified palm oil.

Areas of cooperation covered in the MoU include Indian consumer education, the promotion of MSPO in India, business, technical and research exchange between the two countries’ palm oil sectors, supporting the technical sourcing for India’s “Atmanirbhar Bharat” plans and the assistance in the development of India’s palm oil industry.

Sudhakar Desai, President of IVPA said that the MoU would "go a long way in addressing the issues related to palm oil promotion, sustainability, research and development and right policy advocacy and will create a platform for regular exchange of ideas for the benefit of all stakeholders.”

Malaysia exported approximately 1.4 million mt of palm oil to India between January-June this year, according to data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB).

IVPA’s Desai also added that India is expected to import around 3.8-4 million mt of palm oil from Malaysia in 2022.

Malaysia has also been actively making efforts to promote its palm oil, with previous MoUs signed with Saudi Arabia’s Savola Group and UAE-based multinational conglomerate LuLu Group International earlier this year.