Indonesia Steps Up Palm Oil Sludge Exports to Malaysia

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesia has announced that it will export palm oil sludge or palm acid oil to Malaysia, as part of the steps that both countries are taking to safeguard commodity as their leading export.

Indonesian palm oil company PT Alam Duta Mandiri and their Malaysian counterpart Dendro Integrasi SDN Bhd signed the MoU on Tuesday.

The signing of the deal was witnessed by Indonesian Ministry of Trade official Kasan and Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia Datuk Zainal Abidin Bakar.

Under the MoU, Alam Duta Mandiri will export two thousand tons of Indonesian palm oil sludge to Dendro Integrasi SDN Bhd every month for the next two years. Kasan, the Ministry of Trade’s Director General for the Development of National Exports, hailed the agreement.

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“I hope that other Indonesian [palm oil] producers will follow [Alam Duta Mandiri] in meeting the demand for palm oil sludge in Malaysia, as well as other palm oil related products around the world,” he said in a press release on Wednesday, February 17.

“Both companies can lead the way for [Indonesia and Malaysia] to raise the volume of the palm oil trade, promote the commodity on the global market and raise its profile, and tackle smear campaigns on the product.”

Kasan noted that palm oil, including palm oil sludge, has played a significant role in the global economy over the past two decades by meeting the need for foodstuffs, oils and fats.

Shuterstock A truckload of palm oil

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“Palm oil sludge can be used in the energy industry, cosmetics and consumer goods such as soaps and shampoos. Palm oil is a viable source of alternative energy at a time when fossil fuels are becoming an increasingly finite source of energy.”

Kasan assured that the government and other stakeholders in the palm oil industry will use sustainable practices to support Indonesian palm oil and disprove negative campaigns levelled at the commodity.

Indonesia has exported $544.47 million of palm oil sludge to other countries in 2020, up 6.6 percent from 2019. Malaysia is the leading export destination for this commodity with $185.37 million for a market share of 34.05 percent.

Palm oil plantations hava been accused carrying out unsustainable practices, such as deforestation and forest fires from slash and burn agricultural practices that led to smog spreading throughout Southeast Asia. 

(Writer: Yohana Artha Uly | Editor : Bambang P. Jatmiko)

Source: 

https://money.kompas.com/read/2021/02/17/112752026/indonesia-teken-kerja-sama-ekspor-limbah-sawit-ke-malaysia?page=all#page3.