Basal stem rot (BSR), caused by the fungus Ganoderma, is the most serious disease of oil palm in Malaysia and Indonesia. Previously, research on BSR was hampered by the failure to artificially infect oil palm with the fungus. Although Ganoderma had been associated with BSR (Thompson, 1931), proof of its pathogenicity to satisfy Koch’s postulate […]

There is high demand for monounsaturated and polyunsaturated dietary oils and fats; hence, an increase in their unsaturation is desirable. Higher unsaturation in palm oil enables better penetration into the liquid oil market. The current palm oil is semi-solid at room temperature (28ºC), limiting its use as liquid oil in temperate countries. MPOB has developed […]

The country is currently facing rapidly depleting prime agricultural land for further expansion of oil palm planting area. As such,the strategy by the oil palm industry should be to increase yield per unit area. This may be achieved through good agricultural practices (GAP) and planting of improved genetic materials. Another alternative is to develop specialized […]

The pineapple (Ananas comosus) is a member of the Bromeliaceae, a large, diverse family of about 2000 species. It was introduced to Malaysia in the 16th century by the Portuguese, and it is believed to have originated from South America. The plant is a rosette-forming, herbaceous monocot, 60-20 cm tall and 90 cm – 120 […]

Crop integration with oil palm is one way to maximize land productivity. To ensure oil palm growers can integrate their oil palm with other crops continuously, double avenue planting of oil palm was used. However, there is still need to identify the crops suitable for integration. In addition, a good production system for such crops […]