Palm Oil Leadership Award Dinner 2008

  • June 12, 2009
16 years ago

MPOC Recognises Outstanding Leaders In The Palm Oil Industry Through Palm Oil Industry Leadership Award (PILA)

MPOC Recognises Outstanding Leaders In The Palm Oil Industry Through Palm Oil Industry Leadership Award (PILA)
(L-R: Tan Sri Datuk Dr.Yusof Basiron, Tun Dr.Lim Keng Yaik, Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui, Dato’ Seri Lee Oi Hian)

Carcosa Seri Negara, Kuala Lumpur, October 13, 2008 – Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui, Minister of Plantation Industries & Commodities, presented the inaugural Palm Oil Industry Leadership Award (PILA) to Tun Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, former Minister of Plantation Industries, at the annual Malaysian Palm Oil Council’s Leadership Dinner held in Kuala Lumpur on October 13th 2008.

The PILA award, which is a brainchild of MPOC, is an important recognition for Malaysian palm oil leaders who have impacted the industry in the current or past years in such an outstanding way either through their innovative thinking, policy changes, corporate governance or leadership qualities that resulted in measurable benefits to the palm oil industry or created substantial opportunities in new developments and markets for Malaysian palm oil. This award also encourages the younger generation to become future leaders of the palm oil industry thus ensuring the industry will continuously improve and be able to address future challenges confidently.

The citation for Tun Dr. Lim Keng Yaik was read by Tan Sri Datuk Dr. Yusof Basiron, Chief Executive Officer of MPOC. Under the leadership of Tun Dr Lim Keng Yaik, the Malaysian palm oil industry developed and bloomed into a global leader and a formidable voice in the global oils & fats market.  Tun’s most notable achievement was his sheer determination to fight the American Soybean Association (ASA) and parties related to it for smearing the healthy image of palm oil in 1980s.  Tun has always regarded the ASA’s ‘anti-tropical oils’ campaign as a trade barrier instituted against palm oil. His personal commitment to this battle was so intense that a book on the ‘war of oils’ had been written to chart his efforts and strategies to counter the ASA.  It was during his era that funding was provided to overseas independent institutions to research into the virtues of palm oil with the positive results inter alia the trans fatty acid issue which Tun used as an effective weapon to fight the ASA. 

Tun Dr. Lim Keng Yaik also instituted many short- and long-term schemes to support the prices of CPO during the crisis of low CPO prices. These include accelerated and subsidised replanting, export credit refinancing for the developing countries and release of duty free export quotas for CPO.  Tun was also way ahead of biofuel era when he experimented with the burning of palm oil in power stations to get rid of excess stocks. Tun also initiated barter trading with Indian railways and Chinese parties to create demand for palm oil.  With these measures, the industry was nursed back to health.  Indeed, Tun was a man of action and his massive contributions to the Malaysian palm oil industry are priceless.

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