ABSTRACT:
Accelerated replanting of old and unproductive oil palm is part of the government’s National Key Economic Area (NKEA) Transformation Programme. It will enable changes to be made within the oil palm supply chain, as the driver of the national high income strategy. Despite its vast potentials, the industry, however, is burgeoned by the issue of stagnating fresh fruit bunches (FFB) yield. Increasing prevalence of old palms resulted from low rate of replanting at only 1.18% per annum was attributed mainly to the economic reason of higher FFB prices. If this trend continues, there would be a likely situation of ‘the rush to replant’, which could affect the overall supply chain, starting from the demand for seeds/seedlings, and subsequently affecting the milling and refining sectors, culminating in the export sector. This article, in highlighting the significance of replanting, has elucidated that the country requires continued accelerated replanting at the rate of at least 155 000 ha/yr.
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