02/12/2015 (Bernama) - Smallholders who lack knowledge and support for good agricultural practices or skills such as negotiating rates for their harvest stand to gain from the Sabah Government's move to fully produce Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) within the next 10 years.

The Malaysian Palm Oil NGO Coalition (MPONGOC) said the move will also help secure environmental benefits such as safe water supply and soil conservation, as all producers in Sabah will be both obliged and assisted to meet globally-accepted standards such as those advocated by Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

"The commitment to help Sabah's smallholders achieve RSPO standards will future-proof their access to top-flight international markets," MPONGOC representative, Cynthia Ong, said in a statement Tuesday.

MPONGOC, a civil society grouping made up of non-governmental organisations and a research organisation, is committed to playing an active role in making sure this new vision set by the Sabah government is a success.

Sabah Forestry Department Director, Datuk Sam Mannan, who made the announcement on behalf of the government, said the move will elevate the state's position in responsibly producing palm oil and would spur the interest of markets keen to source vegetable oil as a premium product.

Ong said MPONGOC also hoped the formation by Malaysia and Indonesia of the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) will act as a higher level positive force globally.

"It would be fantastic if CPOPC supports the zero deforestation pledges made by some of the big palm oil producers," he said.