Kuala Lumpur, Oct 4 - Malaysia's largest producer of palm oil aims to boost exports of its packaged products by targeting fast-food chains and nations that lack refining facilities, a senior company official said on Wednesday.
The state-owned Federal Land Development Authority, or Felda, which produces around 17 percent of Malaysia's crude palm oil, has started selling to fast-food chain McDonald's Corp. in China and is trying to bag a deal with competitor Burger King.
"We have sent samples to Burger King in Singapore for approval," said Wan Mohamad Zain Wan Ismail, chief executive of Delima Oil Products Sdn Bhd, a marketing arm of Felda, told Reuters. "We are already supplying to McDonald's in China."
Delima sells around 240,000 tonnes a year of packaged palm products such as cooking oil, vegetable ghee, margarine and dough fat, in both domestic and overseas markets.
It ships to regions as far away as Turkey, Afghanistan, West Africa, the Middle East and as close by as Cambodia, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Felda targets nations with few refining and packaging facilities of their own for its sales of palm oil products. "Afghanistan and other land-locked nations around it are our biggest market," Wan Mohamad Zain said in an interview.
He said the edible oil cargo was shipped to Iran, and then went by road to countries such as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
"Turkey is a growing market as it a hub for exports to neighbouring nations in Europe and Asia."
Wan Mohamad Zain said sales of packaged edible oil to the Southeast Asian region are likely to rise in the coming years, with demand growing in Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam.
"Myanmar is buying edible oil in bulk form, but their market is also growing, they will have more super markets and people will be looking to buy more packaged products rather than in the loose form," he added.
Delima plans to begin shipping palm oil in tins to Myanmar next year with an initial target of 2,000 to 3,000 tonnes.
It also exports packaged palm products to biggest buyers China and India but does not see a substantial growth in demand.
"They have their own refining and packaging industry, and there are laws that protect the domestic industry."
Felda officials said the company was looking at entering into a joint venture with a Dubai-based company to push up sales to Africa and the Middle East.
Wan Mohamad Zain declined to discuss the topic until the joint venture agreement was signed.
Felda, Malaysia's biggest palm oil company, produces around 2.5 million tonnes of crude palm oil each year and manages some 800,000 hectares of plantation land.
It has 72 crude palm oil mills, seven refineries and two packaging units.