13 Sept 2010
At our Raya Open House, I had wanted actually to request my old classmate Mr K Perumal to explain to my 2 brothers the economic feasibility of planting oil palm on rubber land. But the ocassion, I suppose, was not right, simply because it was Hari Raya and people do not want to discuss any heavy issues. I hope there will come a good time to discuss whether it is now timely to convert our rubber estate to oil palm. Our family rubber estate of 13 acres is now more than 25 years old, nearing its lifespan. Something needs to be done on the land, even though my aged mother convinced me that she is still getting some income from the rubber estate. I suppose I have to put this conversion idea on hold for some time yet.
Previous discussion with Perumal made me want to convert it immediately, but it would have to be a family decision when to embark on it. Once planted, it would take 3 years for the oil palm to bear its fruits, as compared to rubber which takes 7 years to harvest.
Showing posts with label Oil Palm - The Wonder Crop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oil Palm - The Wonder Crop. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
13 April 2010
Our local daily The Star today carried an interesting article on oil palm harvesting under the Commodities Talk Column by Reporter Hanim Adnan. Yes, the call to mechanize oil palm harvesting is very appropriate right now, and also then since 3 decades ago. Much R&D work on this subject had been done and is still going on at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board(MPOB), but so far, no breakthrough technology has emerged to mechanize the harvesting process. The Mechanical Harvesting Pole(MHP) aside, the strategy now is to grow the dumpy oil palm, short but more productive species so that the harvesters do not need to use the long and clumsy harveting poles to harvest the bounty. I totally agree that harvesting should not be a labour-intensive process as what it is now, in the light of labour shortage in the plantations. I am sure estate and plantation managers would very much welcome farm robots working their fields, but are they able to recognise the ripe FFB to pluck?
P/S In memory of the late Tn Hj Ir. Ahmad bin Hitam (1949-2009) of MPOB, who spearheaded pioneering work in oil palm mechanization in PORIM/MPOB. Al-Fatihah....
Our local daily The Star today carried an interesting article on oil palm harvesting under the Commodities Talk Column by Reporter Hanim Adnan. Yes, the call to mechanize oil palm harvesting is very appropriate right now, and also then since 3 decades ago. Much R&D work on this subject had been done and is still going on at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board(MPOB), but so far, no breakthrough technology has emerged to mechanize the harvesting process. The Mechanical Harvesting Pole(MHP) aside, the strategy now is to grow the dumpy oil palm, short but more productive species so that the harvesters do not need to use the long and clumsy harveting poles to harvest the bounty. I totally agree that harvesting should not be a labour-intensive process as what it is now, in the light of labour shortage in the plantations. I am sure estate and plantation managers would very much welcome farm robots working their fields, but are they able to recognise the ripe FFB to pluck?
P/S In memory of the late Tn Hj Ir. Ahmad bin Hitam (1949-2009) of MPOB, who spearheaded pioneering work in oil palm mechanization in PORIM/MPOB. Al-Fatihah....
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Malaysia - Tanah Tumpahnya Darah ku
16 September 2009
Today is the day when Malaysia was formed, with the inclusion of Sabah and Sarawak. Today Malaysia celebrates 46 years of its formation and unision with the two sovereign states mentioned earlier. It was a great idea of our former Prime Minister, Tengku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj to include the two former colonies of British Borneo to join Malaya in forming Malaysia. We have now a bigger melting pot of races - Malays, Chinese, Indians, Sikhs, Kadazans, Bidayuh, Melanau, Dayak, Bajau, Penans, etc,etc. Our country is so blessed, we have peace and prosperity and the promise of 1Malaysia strengthens the bondage amongst all the diverse races.
1Malaysia disandarkan kepada 3 teras dalam memperkukuhkan perpaduan nasional ia-itu:
Prinsip Penerimaan, Prinsip Kenegaraan, Prinsip Keadilan Sosial. Our tagline Rakyat di dahulukan, Pencapaian diutamakan.Justeru pemimpin dan rakyat perlu saling memahami dan menghayati lapan nilai IMalaysia, ia-itu Budaya Kecemerlangan, Ketabahan, Rendah Hati, Penerimaan, Kesetiaan, Meritokrasi, Pendidikan dan Integriti.
PS1. About 2 months ago, Bank Negara Malaysia(BNM) released its new RM50 note. Of course, the Ist Yang Di Pertuan Agong continued to grace the new Ringgit, highlighted with our national flower, the Bunga Raya. It was obvious the striking splash of red differentiates the old and the new note. I was really proud to see that the new RM50 note also carried the image of the hybrid oil palm species, short and sturdy. Of course, it was nostalgic to see the proud image of our Tengku shouting "Merdeka!" seven times. Malaysia, Tanah air ku, Tanah tumpahnya darah ku.....
PS2. 16 September has been declared a public holiday beginning 2010 to commemorate Malaysia Day.
Today is the day when Malaysia was formed, with the inclusion of Sabah and Sarawak. Today Malaysia celebrates 46 years of its formation and unision with the two sovereign states mentioned earlier. It was a great idea of our former Prime Minister, Tengku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj to include the two former colonies of British Borneo to join Malaya in forming Malaysia. We have now a bigger melting pot of races - Malays, Chinese, Indians, Sikhs, Kadazans, Bidayuh, Melanau, Dayak, Bajau, Penans, etc,etc. Our country is so blessed, we have peace and prosperity and the promise of 1Malaysia strengthens the bondage amongst all the diverse races.
1Malaysia disandarkan kepada 3 teras dalam memperkukuhkan perpaduan nasional ia-itu:
Prinsip Penerimaan, Prinsip Kenegaraan, Prinsip Keadilan Sosial. Our tagline Rakyat di dahulukan, Pencapaian diutamakan.Justeru pemimpin dan rakyat perlu saling memahami dan menghayati lapan nilai IMalaysia, ia-itu Budaya Kecemerlangan, Ketabahan, Rendah Hati, Penerimaan, Kesetiaan, Meritokrasi, Pendidikan dan Integriti.
PS1. About 2 months ago, Bank Negara Malaysia(BNM) released its new RM50 note. Of course, the Ist Yang Di Pertuan Agong continued to grace the new Ringgit, highlighted with our national flower, the Bunga Raya. It was obvious the striking splash of red differentiates the old and the new note. I was really proud to see that the new RM50 note also carried the image of the hybrid oil palm species, short and sturdy. Of course, it was nostalgic to see the proud image of our Tengku shouting "Merdeka!" seven times. Malaysia, Tanah air ku, Tanah tumpahnya darah ku.....
PS2. 16 September has been declared a public holiday beginning 2010 to commemorate Malaysia Day.
Monday, August 31, 2009
MALAYSIA - Tanah Air Ku
Monday 31 August 2009
Malaysia celebrated her 52nd Birthday today! In the Star, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad splashed out a full page advertisement, wishing all Malaysians A Happy 52nd Merdeka. The advert carried a beautiful image of 3 little chidren brandishing the Jalur Gemilang, against the background of an oil palm plantation. I thought this is a very symbolic image of the future of Malaysia - One Nation. One Dream.
The night before on Astro, I was attracted to the Cerita Anak Malaysia (CAM), featuring Chef Wan, the No I in the World Celebrity Chef. I did not know that Chef Wan grew up in the midst of the oil palm in a
FELDA Scheme in the sixties. He seemed nostalgic in the episode which was shot at his kampung, reminded him how he toiled the land with his father and brothers, performed the assisted pollination, carried the big Fresh Fruit Bunches(FFB), cried out for his father when he saw snakes sliding through the palms in the late evenings before going back home.Definitely, Chef Wan is a second generation FELDA settler, and a very succesful one at that. Congratulations to him, with his passion for cooking and a dtermination to be successful, he travelled around the world, but never forgetting his roots. A true Malaysian!
P/S I remembered Chef Wan well when we invited him over to Rumah PUSPANITA in the late 1990s to grace the occassion of A Cooking Demo using Palm Oil. Of course, the ladies enjoyed his joke here and there....macam mak nenek!
Malaysia celebrated her 52nd Birthday today! In the Star, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad splashed out a full page advertisement, wishing all Malaysians A Happy 52nd Merdeka. The advert carried a beautiful image of 3 little chidren brandishing the Jalur Gemilang, against the background of an oil palm plantation. I thought this is a very symbolic image of the future of Malaysia - One Nation. One Dream.
The night before on Astro, I was attracted to the Cerita Anak Malaysia (CAM), featuring Chef Wan, the No I in the World Celebrity Chef. I did not know that Chef Wan grew up in the midst of the oil palm in a
FELDA Scheme in the sixties. He seemed nostalgic in the episode which was shot at his kampung, reminded him how he toiled the land with his father and brothers, performed the assisted pollination, carried the big Fresh Fruit Bunches(FFB), cried out for his father when he saw snakes sliding through the palms in the late evenings before going back home.Definitely, Chef Wan is a second generation FELDA settler, and a very succesful one at that. Congratulations to him, with his passion for cooking and a dtermination to be successful, he travelled around the world, but never forgetting his roots. A true Malaysian!
P/S I remembered Chef Wan well when we invited him over to Rumah PUSPANITA in the late 1990s to grace the occassion of A Cooking Demo using Palm Oil. Of course, the ladies enjoyed his joke here and there....macam mak nenek!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Joint Ventures(JV)
Monday 24 August 2009
Today, I read the Star and agree totally with our YAB Prime Minister when he said that RISDA, FELCRA, and FELDA should form a business consortium to carry out critical downstream activities. He said he was confident that the threeagricultural agencies could multiply their profits and eradicate poverty by working together. "The three remain separate but the projects can be carried out together through a consortium.
He further suggested that these agro aagencies could jointly set up a palm oil mill so that the oil palm fruits harvested at their plantations be sent at one processing centre to extract the oil, resulting in bigger economic profits for all. As a Prime Minister, YAB Datuk Seri Najib could see the macro outlook of strategic partnership, the economics of integrating facilities for the economic benefit of the stakeholders in such a joint venture. Afterall, it is for the ultimate aim of producing more palm oil for the country.
As a former government servant, I look forward to such innovative approach in national development. I am pretty sure such an idea never occurred in the minds of the CEOs of the agencies concerned because each Management is too busy trying to better their corporate performance, maybe solving problems at the micro level that they cannot see the macro side of things ie local joint ventures with sister organizations.. We need such Think Big ideas to benefit the rakyat.
Today, I read the Star and agree totally with our YAB Prime Minister when he said that RISDA, FELCRA, and FELDA should form a business consortium to carry out critical downstream activities. He said he was confident that the threeagricultural agencies could multiply their profits and eradicate poverty by working together. "The three remain separate but the projects can be carried out together through a consortium.
He further suggested that these agro aagencies could jointly set up a palm oil mill so that the oil palm fruits harvested at their plantations be sent at one processing centre to extract the oil, resulting in bigger economic profits for all. As a Prime Minister, YAB Datuk Seri Najib could see the macro outlook of strategic partnership, the economics of integrating facilities for the economic benefit of the stakeholders in such a joint venture. Afterall, it is for the ultimate aim of producing more palm oil for the country.
As a former government servant, I look forward to such innovative approach in national development. I am pretty sure such an idea never occurred in the minds of the CEOs of the agencies concerned because each Management is too busy trying to better their corporate performance, maybe solving problems at the micro level that they cannot see the macro side of things ie local joint ventures with sister organizations.. We need such Think Big ideas to benefit the rakyat.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Integrated Farming - the Agropolitan way
Thursday 6 August 2009
I read with deep interest the agropolitan project to eradicate hard core poverty announced by the PM when he launched it in Runchang in his home constituency in Pekan, Pahang. The Agropolitan project in Pekan is one of the milestones under the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) masterplan to balance development growth between rural and urban areas, and accelerate rural economic growth through agricultural activities and farm-based industry. The participants will be involved in oil palm plantation and sheep rearing as primary activities while supplementing their household income via secondary activities in downstream palm oil initiatives and sheep farming.
On a smaller scale, this idea was introduced by MPOB to oil palm smallholders many years ago under the Integrated Farming Concept, whereby smallholders were given training to rear sheep and cattle in their oil palm plantations to supplement their incomes.
The agropolitan project integrates various other diverse activities which hitherto are done independently on a small scale, such as mushroom planting, tailoring, tourism and homestay programmes, bird nests cultivation, as well as production of craftwork, aquaculture and aquaponics practices. To my mind, this is a grand approach to uplifting the economic life in the kampongs and should be taken seriuosly by all the existing government agencies involved in rural development work, including the new villages. Further, the whole programme can also be done on a strategic parnership basis with the big players in the oil/palm oil industry, like Sime Darby, FELDA, IOI, KL Kepong, etc.
I read with deep interest the agropolitan project to eradicate hard core poverty announced by the PM when he launched it in Runchang in his home constituency in Pekan, Pahang. The Agropolitan project in Pekan is one of the milestones under the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) masterplan to balance development growth between rural and urban areas, and accelerate rural economic growth through agricultural activities and farm-based industry. The participants will be involved in oil palm plantation and sheep rearing as primary activities while supplementing their household income via secondary activities in downstream palm oil initiatives and sheep farming.
On a smaller scale, this idea was introduced by MPOB to oil palm smallholders many years ago under the Integrated Farming Concept, whereby smallholders were given training to rear sheep and cattle in their oil palm plantations to supplement their incomes.
The agropolitan project integrates various other diverse activities which hitherto are done independently on a small scale, such as mushroom planting, tailoring, tourism and homestay programmes, bird nests cultivation, as well as production of craftwork, aquaculture and aquaponics practices. To my mind, this is a grand approach to uplifting the economic life in the kampongs and should be taken seriuosly by all the existing government agencies involved in rural development work, including the new villages. Further, the whole programme can also be done on a strategic parnership basis with the big players in the oil/palm oil industry, like Sime Darby, FELDA, IOI, KL Kepong, etc.
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