Dailyexpress.com (03/10/2017) - Kuala Lumpur: The Malaysian government has agreed to provide another financial incentive to facilitate and help reduce the cost of obtaining the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification.

Plantations and Commodities Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong said the incentive covered 70 per cent of the audit cost for the planted areas above 40.46 to 1,000 hectares and 30 per cent of the same for estates above 1,001 hectares.

"The government also agreed to give 30 per cent incentive on the audit cost for processing facilities including mills, refineries and crushers," he said in a statement yesterday.

Mah made the announcement after obtaining feedback on the MSPO certification from representatives of oil palm plantation companies at a dialogue session held on Sept 27, the statement said.

The dialogue session was attended by more than 120 industry players representing small and medium-sized oil palm estates in the country.

Mah said, as of August, the total planted area that has been certified under the MSPO Certification Scheme stood at 245,381 hectares.

"The certified area includes 237,509 hectares under plantation companies, 3,868 hectares under organised smallholders and 4,004 hectares under independent smallholders.

"A total of 22 mills have been MSPO-certified," he added. – Bernama