23/01/2013 (Borneo Post) - Located nearly 80km from Miri, rural Beluru is a thriving town that serves an increasingly affluent population fuelled by the boom in oil palm smallholdings.

On weekends, the town is crammed with 4WD vehicles, mostly single cabs which the smallholders use to transport fresh fruit bunches (FFBs) of the golden crop – oil palm – which bring them more money than any other crop.

Many of the smallholders sell their FFBs to collection centres although the bigger ones head to the mill which is farther away.

With a surge in smallholdings in this Bakong-Tinjar region in recent years, sales of 4WD vehicles, particularly single cabs and double cabs, had been on the rise in Miri.

Although single cabs can cost almost RM80,000 each, it seems like nearly every household has one.

Double cabs cost more, and the price depends on the accessories and make.

Such vehicles are preferred over small lorries as they are reputedly more nimble and lighter in weight – a requirement in rudimentary earth road condition in smallholdings – and better suited to slippery road conditions than small lorries.

An Iban smallholder in Bakong who has just bought a new Toyota Hilux single cab told The Borneo Post there was no worry about bringing his vehicle for periodic checks by Puspakom unlike the small lorry which was classified as a commercial vehicle by the Road Transport Department.

The dip in FFB prices since last year to less that RM300 per tonne has caused some to put off their intention to purchase single cab trucks but the trend is expected to pick up again later this year when crude palm oil price picks up.

It was also noted that the increasing number of vehicles had brought good business to repair and maintenance workshops in Beluru over the past two years.

With the government encouraging the people to take up oil palm smallholdings through Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), the economic status of longhouse dwellers is also expected to improve.

Miri Division has the most number of oil palm smallholders, making it the pace setter in the state.