MPOB: Use palm milk to reduce dependency on coconut milk

The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has urged consumers in the country to switch to the use of palm milk as an alternative to reduce the dependency on coconut milk, besides increasing the use of palm in the country.

MPOB Chairman, Datuk Seri Ahmad Hamzah said generally, most of the cooking in Malaysia and the Asian region were based on coconut milk and the shortage in the supply of coconuts always happened when it was not managed properly.

Ahmad who is also Jasin Member of Parliament said MBOP undertook various researches and trials continually using palm milk to produce food including dodol, cendol, nasi lemak and others which use coconut milk.

"These initiatives are implemented not to stop the dependency on coconut especially coconut milk totally but to provide choices to consumers.

"We cannot depend only on one product (coconut) as it could cause a shortage and we have to get supply from foreign countries particularly during festive seasons," he said to reporters at his Aidilfitri open house here Sunday.

Also present were Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Idris Haron and MPOB Director-General Dr Ahmad Kushairi Din.

Elaborating further, Ahmad said the use of palm milk extensively would also help increase the economy of more than 600,000 oil palm smallholders in the country, while able to control the coconut milk price in the market.

He said based on research by MPOB's nutrition experts, palm milk contains 50 per cent of saturated fat compared with 92 per cent in coconut milk, has lower cholesterol and is good for health.

Meanwhile, Ahmad Kushairi said the production of palm in the country was about 20 million tonnes annually but its domestic consumption was about 10 per cent.

MPOB had implemented various improvements in creating new technologies to produce quality palm milk, that could last longer and could be commercialised widely, he said.

"Until now, only four small and medium enterprises are involved in the production of palm milk in Malaysia. This figure is still small compared with coconut milk entrepreneurs. It has a market but cannot accommodate the demand," said Ahmad Khusairi.

He said most of the palm milk entrepreneurs were operating in the Klang Valley and MPOB aimed to transfer the palm milk production technology to more entrepreneurs who were interested as this industry was projected to expand rapidly over the next few years.

-- BERNAMA