Malaysia aspires to become the king of chocolates in the Asian region by 2020, according to the Director General of the Malaysian Cocoa Board (MCB), Dr Lee Choon Hui.
He said with the country’s expertise and advancement in research and development (R&D), especially in the production of cocoa and its related products, as well as cooperation from the private sector, such an aspiration could be materialised.
PHOTO BY: KLAUS HÖPFNER
Chocolate commonly comes in dark, milk and white varieties.
“The R&D in Malaysia has progressed well. Malaysia is now exporting more raw materials, and up until 2013, we are the leader in Asia and Oceania (in the production of cocoa products).
“Malaysia aims to become the chocolate king in Asia. This means that chocolate products will be exported and Malaysia will continue to undertake the product development and innovation,” he added.
Dr Lee was speaking to reporters at the Seventh Meeting of the National Focal Point for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Cocoa Club on Asean Cooperation and Joint Approaches in Agriculture and Forest Products Promotion Scheme, on Wednesday. He said that presently Malaysia is doing its best to address some of the challenges in order to achieve this goal.
On MCB’s efforts to encourage cocoa production in the country, Dr Lee said the government offers incentives to farmers, especially the smallholders in the rural areas who are interested in planting cocoa. He said that for a start, the farmers are given training and agricultural needs support such as seeds, fertilizers and facilities worth RM8,000 (US$2,500) . The government will support these farmers for five years until they are independent enough to manage on their own.
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