BANGI, 17 Feb 2023 – A delegation from Quanzhou visited the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) yesterday to strengthen cooperation, notably in encouraging supply chain developments for the Malaysian oil palm industry and Fujian food industry, as well as procurements of palm oil.
In a statement today, MPOB said the delegation, led by Deputy Mayor of Quanzhou, Madam Wang Zhihong and consisting of six government officials as well as nine Chinese main food producers in Fujian Province, had a meeting with the MPOB’s Director General Datuk Dr Ahmad Parveez Ghulam Kadir at MPOB’s head office to procure palm oil to fulfil China’s demand for peak food production season in the third quarter of this year.
Quanzhou is one of the largest production centres for snack food, confectioneries and bakeries. It is also the main destination for palm oil exports in China. The city with an 8.85 million population has more than 1,500 food manufacturing enterprises accounting for RM 90 billion (RMB 150 billion), or 6% of its total industrial output, which was RM 1.44 trillion (RMB 2.4 trillion) in 2021.
Panpan Foods and Dali Foods, based in Quanzhou are listed in the 2021 Top 500 Agricultural Producers in China. Palm oil is the most important ingredient in the snack food industry in China. Food factories in Quanzhou are demanding palm oil with high quality and functionalities to meet the competitive and emerging growth of the snack food market in the country.
”MPOB has developed new palm oil formulations for food applications especially innovations using red palm oil, structured palm fats and palm tocotrienols as ingredients for snack food.
Our innovations and formulations will support the burgeoning and ever-expanding growth of the Chinese snack food industry that demands higher quality palm oil,” said Ahmad Parveez in his welcoming remarks to the Chinese delegation.
Madam Wang in her speech said: “We warmly invite the Malaysian palm oil producers and traders to expand your business contacts and trade relation with Quanzhou City. By building a world-class business climate and collaborating closely with all stakeholders for a win-win future, we pledge to serve the best interests of the industry.”
The delegation meeting was also attended by representatives from MPOB as well as the Malaysian and Chinese industry members interested in food manufacturing and palm oil trade.
Based on Chinese Customs, Fujian province imported 530,000 tonnes of palm oil in 2021. The palm oil uptakes in Quanzhou are expected to grow further in 2023 in light of the lifting of COVID-19 measures and acceleration in economic development in China.
During the delegation meeting, the Chamber of Commerce for Fujian Food Manufacturers and Erapoly Global Sdn. Bhd. exchanged letters of intent for the palm oil trade and witnessed by Datuk Dr Parveez Ghulam Kadir and Madam Wang Zhihong.
China has historically and regularly sourced its palm products from Malaysia. This is demonstrated by the fact that exports of Malaysian palm products to China have tripled from 1.02 million tonnes in 2000 to 3.14 million tonnes in 2022. The meeting with the Chinese delegation from Quanzhou has strengthened Malaysia’s business ties with China, particularly in the palm oil trade that fosters mutual benefits for both economies.
— Akses Malaysia
