Palm oil labeling politically motivated: MPOB

Australia's proposed palm oil labeling law is discriminatory and politically motivated, Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) Chairman Datuk Seri Utama Shahrir Abdul Samad said today.

"Labeling should be prompted by health and environmental issues and not political interest," he told reporters after the launch of biodiesel B5 usage at a Shell pump station in Ayer Keroh, Melaka.

Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam officiated the ceremony.

Shahrir said the MPOB had proven through research that palm oil was good for human.

He said the proposed law would adversely affect Malaysia's palm oil industry. "An issue like this can also impact the smallholders and farmers," he added.

According to reports, the Australian Senate had last week passed the Food Standard Amendment (Truth in Labelling - Palm Oil) Bill 2010 that would require products containing palm oil be explicitly labelled, rather than described as vegetable oil.

Meanwhile, Shahrir said 107 pump stations nationwide started selling biodiesel B5 today. B5 is a blend of 95 per cent regular petroleum-based diesel with five per cent palm-oil based biodiesel.

The use of biodiesel B5 could contribute to savings of almost eight million litres of fossil diesel annually, he said.

He said the B5 programme would not have any implications on fuel prices for the public because the government would continue to provide subsidy to ensure the retail price of biofuel B5 would be the same as that of petroleum diesel. -- Bernama