Johari: Govt to offer incentives for using palm kernel waste in chicken feed
28/10/2024 (New Straits Time), Kuala Lumpur - The government plans to offer incentives to chicken breeders who use palm kernel waste as animal feed, the plantation and commodities minister told the Dewan Rakyat told today.
Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said the incentives were intended to reduce dependence on imported chicken feed.
"We want to encourage breeders to supplement imports like corn and soybean with this waste material.
"Breeders using five to 10 per cent of waste-based supplements in their feed can qualify for financial incentives.
"If more breeders use this method, this will reduce our dependence on imported feed as we'll be using palm kernel waste as a chicken feed base."
He said this in response to a question from Wan Hassan Mohd Ramli (Perikatan Nasional-Dungun).
Wan Hassan had asked about the ministry's collaboration with the Terengganu government to develop livestock feed and reduce reliance on imports.
In his reply, Johari had called on state governments to consult with industry players before making investments.
"The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has established a proof-of-concept factory.
"But the issue is that some of the factories that we build to develop animal feed are located far from livestock industry areas.
"This results in high costs for industry players to transport these materials, making the prices non-competitive compared with regular feed.
"Eventually, some of these factories had to be closed. While the factories had their benefits, they were in the wrong location.
"That's why I advise state governments looking to collaborate — I'm open to it and will be involved — to discuss it with industry players first before any investment is made."
Meanwhile, Johari said the ministry, through MPOB, was conducting research and development in green technology to identify palm waste that could be reintegrated into the value chain.
"For example, empty fruit bunches, mesocarp fibre and palm kernel shells are biomass waste that can generate renewable energy.
"This waste material will be burned in a boiler, and the steam produced will drive turbines to generate electricity that can be used in palm oil mills."
Johari said that based on government efforts, by 2030, the biomass industry was expected to generate revenue worth RM17 billion and attract investments of RM7 billion.
"This will create about 33,000 jobs in the biomass sector by 2030, including in bio-pellet production, biomass energy generation, pulp and paper, treated carbon and bio-fertiliser production."