17/03/2012 (Gold Star Daily World News) - The feverish push to include oil palm as high yield value crop in the National Greening Program (NGP) of the government shifted to high gear, the Philippine Palm Oil Development Council Inc. (PPDCI) said as it concluded the 1st Palm Oil Investment Forum here recently. PPDCI president Er win Garcia, himself a leading industry player, said the time has come for the national government to recognize oil palm farming as a solution to overcome rural poverty. Oil palm is widely known today as "Asia's miracle farm tree" due to its tremendous potential for high yield and farm income.

"PPDCI seeks the support of government particularly the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) in promoting the country's emerging palm oil industry," Garcia said. The forum, attended by over 100 local key players of the palm oil industry in Mindanao, served as a prelude to a bigger oil palm event in March next year - the staging of the 8th National Oil Palm Congress in Cagayan de Oro City to be hosted by A Brown Energy Resources Development Inc. (Aberdi) headed by its president, Robert Pizarro.

Under PD 232, PCA has been mandated to promote and accelerate the development of coconut and other palm oil industry in all aspects. Oil palm, being a member of the palm family, should not be treated as an unwanted crop by the PCA. Oil palm, in many aspects, compliments and serves to cover crop the weaknesses of coconut trees. To mitigate climate change, oil palm should be made as priority crop under E.O. 26 - The National Greening Program by converting millions of hectares of unproductive grass and brush Lands into oil palm plantations, he said.

In a paper presented during the forum, Dr. Pablito Pamplona, a retired professor of the University of Southern Mindanao and a known expert in oil palm farming, urged local industry players to prepare strategic localized road map in the expansion of oil palm farming and implement the proven successful techniques used in Indonesia, Malaysia and ThaiLand in overcoming rural poverty. Pamplona said the government should create an interagency cooperation from among key players of the industry to include the DA, DENR, DAR, PCA and non-government organizations (NGOs) to maximize the potentials of oil palm farming as a tool in poverty alleviation.

Oil palm farming has been extensively cited to have helped overcome poverty and promoted rural prosperity in Malaysia, Indonesia and ThaiLand. These Asean countries are now the leaders in the industry, supplying the world market with unlimited business opportunities derived from oil palm farming, he said.