|
|
Malaysia Agribusiness Report Q3 2009Published by: Business Monitor International Published: Jun. 29, 2009 - 63 Pages Table of Contents
AbstractWhile the agricultural sector will not be as hard hit as other sectors, such as manufacturing, in the currentdownturn, falling demand for some of Malaysia's key agricultural exports like rubber and palm oil willsee the value of the sector fall.As Malaysia's economy contracts this year and jobs are lost in the cities, the agricultural sector will see aninflux of new workers this year as laid-off employees return to their villages. The agriculture ministry haslaunched a programme offering low-interest loans to new entrants into the sector to begin small-scaleproduction. Despite the myriad distractions posed by the economic downturn and political difficulties currently beingfaced by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO)-led coalition, support for the agriculturalsector will remain strong under the new Prime Minister Najib Razak. Government interest in improving productivity in the sector was boosted by the 'food crisis' of 2008 as thecost of Malaysia's key food imports of rice and corn soared. The crisis also moved the focus more ontofood production and away from Malaysia's stronger sectors of rubber and palm oil. While the food self-sufficiency worries of last year could easily be overshadowed by the current woes ofthe important export sector, the government's need to sure up its support should see interest in the sectorcontinue. The UNMO's Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition is seeing the toughest challenge yet toits monopoly on power and Prime Minister Najib knows that he needs to keep his base among ethnicMalays on side. It seems likely that more funding will be given to agriculture this year following the allocation of an extraMYR5.6bn to improving food security in February by the previous prime minister Datuk Seri AbdullahAhmad Badawi. The 10th Malaysia Plan, beginning in 2011, will also provide more funds to agriculture. Though food security has been the main issue for the agriculture ministry of late, the MalaysianInternational Cocoa Fair held in May brought focus onto Malaysia's cocoa sector. Malaysian cocoa beanproduction has plummeted over the past couple of decades, falling from almost 250,000 tonnes at the startof the 1990s to under 30,000 tonnes last year. This has been driven mainly by producers, particularlylarge estates, switching to oil palms which are hardier and have offered better returns. While primary production has been plummeting, Malaysia's cocoa grinders have been growing fromstrength to strength and in 2008 the country imported 523,926 tonnes of cocoa beans. The imbalancebetween Malaysia's valuable grinding industry and its increasingly insignificant domestic cocoa beanproduction is causing worries within the industry. Indonesia, Malaysia's chief supplier of cocoa beans,was last year hit by a devastating disease outbreak, increasing concern about security of the importsneeded to fuel Malaysia's cocoa processing. While the grindings sector will suffer in 2009 as the worldwide recession causes demand for chocolate tofall, we expect cocoa bean production to begin to see a turnaround. There is little chance of the largecocoa estates being re-established, but the government, through the Malaysian Cocoa Board (MCB), hasbeen encouraging smallholders to move into cocoa growing. Subsidies are on offer for new or rejuvenatedcocoa plantations and the MCB has been implementing programmes to improve productivity throughtraining and the distribution of high-yielding plants. While any recovery will undoubtedly be slow, and production is unlikely to see again the heights of 20years ago, it looks like Malaysian cocoa production will be saved from dwindling down to nothing. Get Full Details About This Report >> |
|
|||
|
About MarketResearch.com
|
||||