Musa challenges palm oil critics

Sime Darby Bhd's Chairman Tun Musa Hitam today threw a challenge to the critics of Malaysia's palm oil industry, saying he wants to meet them, specifically those in the Australian Senate who had proposed and supported the 'Truth in Labelling-Palm Oil Bill'.

"I want to meet those who are against us. I would rather they come here and see what we have done to ensure sustainable oil palm planting," he said.

The bill, which was moved by independent senator Nick Xenophon in late 2009, proposed, among others, amendment on the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Act 1991 requiring food manufacturers to list palm oil on food labels.

However, last month, the Community Affairs Legislative Committee of the Australian Senate in Canberra recommended that the bill not be passed.

The bill raised concern on the relationship between palm oil production and deforestation, and the endangerment of orang utans and other wildlife.

Musa, who was speaking to reporters after launching a book today, made the remarks in response to a question on whether he would be travelling to Australia.

He also called on the critics to stop "scaring consumers with your labelling and exploiting their fears. Come to us. You want a green world, we (also) want a green world. We are democrats after all."

The former cabinet minister said he welcomed criticisms, provided it came with knowledge and awareness of the implications it could bring on the economy of Malaysia and other oil palm-producing nations as well as the impact on consumers in other countries.

"We accept their criticisms, but not just to cut off our lifeline."

He said Malaysia was also undertaking her development with responsibility, awareness and sensitivity to the modern current needs of the world.

When the issue that palm oil was unhealthy was proven wrong during Musa's tenure as primary industries minister, lobbyists took up a new issue that Malaysia was destroying forests and threatening the wildlife to make way for oil
palm plantation.

"I must say there was a great deal of truth in what they (lobbyists) said. But I can also safely say that they are out of date in the sense that we Malaysians had the courage and the strength to admit our mistakes in the past and now, we give top priority to what we call sustainable development of the oil palm," he added.

Meanwhile, Musa said Sime Darby, one of the major oil palm planters in the country, had spent so much money in environment and wildlife preservation.

"We clean up forests, we allocate areas to ensure that threatened species, especially the orang utans, are no longer being threatened.

"You can check up on what we have been doing, our list of species that we have identified and our dedication with the collaboration with related institutions, bodies and departments. We are seriously spending money and effort on this," he said.