23/03/2023 (The Star Online), Kuala Lumpur - The Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) will continue to demand changes to the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

MPOC chief executive officer Belvinder Kaur Sron said the MPOC would support the efforts of Malaysia’s smallholders to defend their families and communities.

“Malaysian palm oil is sustainable, and should never be considered high risk. The EU must provide an exemption for smallholders under the EUDR and offer a guarantee that Malaysia will not be designated as a high-risk jurisdiction for deforestation,” she said in a statement yesterday.

A delegation of major smallholder organisations had presented a petition on the EUDR to the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels.The move followed a protest held on March 15 by several hundred oil palm and rubber small farmers from Federal Land Development Authority, National Association of Smallholders, Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority, Sarawak Dayak Oil Palm Planters Association, FELCRA Bhd and the Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority.

The groups represent 2.5 million Malaysian smallholders and their families. The petition sought the EU’s endorsement of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil and removal of Malaysia from the list of countries at risk if the EUDR is implemented. — Bernama.

https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2023/03/23/mpoc-to-support-efforts-of-smallholders