CAIRO - In a bid to bolster trade opportunities between Egyptian and Malaysian partners in the field of Malaysian palm oil, the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) and the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), in collaboration with the Chamber of Food Industries, held a seminar on palm oil last Thursday. The seminar provided a platform for interaction and the latest information on Malaysian palm oil. It was attended by Fakhruddin Abdul Mukti, Ambassador of Malaysia to Egypt, Yousri Tinawy, General Manager of the Chamber of Food Industries, Wan Ahmad Tarmizi, Trade Commissioner, Johari Minal, Regional Manager of MPOB and Kamal Azami, Regional Manager of MPOC. According to the Malaysian Ambassador, palm oil revenues in Malaysia were estimated at $20 billion. Exports of Malaysian palm oil products amounted to 20.3 million tonnes in the 2010-2011period. Egypt is considered a flourishing market for the palm oil industry, as local food production depends on palm oil. The Ambassador said during the seminar that Egypt – one of the biggest markets for Malaysian palm oil – imported 1.6 million tonnes, while about 800,000 million tonnes were used in Egyptian industries for the production of cooking oil, vegetarian fats, soap, chocolate and crisps. For his part, Trade Commissioner Wan Ahmad Tarmizi explained that his main task was to assist Egyptian businessmen and entrepreneurs who traded in Malaysian products and to insist on the importance of upholding validity and trust regarding the body they were dealing with in order to avoid complaints and scams. Tarmizi was asked whether the political unrest had any impact on the Egyptian-Malaysian trade. He replied: "I am confident that our exports already targeted the right recipients in Egypt. We were therefore happy with the revenues and keen to assist Egyptians in returning their investments." The Malaysian industry is m ainly based on palm oil and covers one-third of global plant oil demands. Malaysia recently faced discrimination from the European Union, which supported and protected its own plant oil producers. The policy was part of a Renewable Energy Directive implemented in 2010. According to Kamak Azmi, Regional Director of MPOC, the Malaysian government had to deal with other big challenges like labour costs, arable land for palm oil production and NGO campaigns that put pressure on decision makers to impose strict policies on the palm oil industry.
