Ambassador: Netherlands fertile ground for palm oil innovation

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In the Netherlands, ambassador to Malaysia Karin Mossenlechner is urging Malayia’s palm oil industry to view Dutch universities as an avenue to expand into Europe.

“Palm oil has the potential to be applied in high value-added food products. Examples are infant formulas and food products for people with special dietary requirements, such as the growing number of elderly people,” said Mossenlechner tells The Edge Financial Daily. “This still requires research and for Malaysian palm oil companies, it is of strategic importance to initiate, or at least take part in, such research.” She notes that, out of all Malaysian investment in the Netherlands , palm oil players like Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Sime Darby Bhd and IOI Corp Bhd make up 60%.

The R&D capabilities of Dutch universities and research institutions, such as the Netherlands Food Valley and the Universities of Wageningen and Utrecht, can support the needed innovations, she added.