New Dwarf Trees Set to Revolutionize Palm Oil Market
- Nigeria-derived CPS2 variety will boost yield, cut crop losses
- More efficient plantations could aid in sustainability
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Plant scientist Meilina Ong Abdullah treads between neat rows of young palms and points to a petite variety that she says may help revolutionize a $19 billion Malaysian export crop.
The dwarf trees at a government research center in Malaysia’s southern state of Johor are clones of a new variety bred to be 30 percent smaller than regular oil palms when they mature. That’s a significant advantage for farmers harvesting the red and orange fruit that can grow between thorny fronds up to five stories high.