Malaysia hopes to start exporting fresh pineapples on a large scale to China by early next year after ironing out bureaucratic issues with the Chinese authorities.
The first shipment of the fruits to China was scheduled for early next year but no approval has been given by the authorities there.
Malaysia Pineapple Industry Board (MPIB) director-general Sahdan Salim hoped the issue could be solved next month during a visit by Malaysian officials to Xian, China.
“This issue is similar to the ban imposed on Malaysia’s bird nest to China which was resolved early this year and we are hoping for a similar outcome for the pineapple issue,” he told a press conference after hosting a Hari Raya open house and presenting employee excellence awards at the MPIB headquarters in Bandar Baru UDA here yesterday.
Sahdan said the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob would attend an agriculture expo in Xian next month.
The minister, he said, would hold discussions with his Chinese counterpart on the quarantine procedures imposed by the Chinese authorities which delayed the export of Malaysian pineapples.
Sahdan said both countries had last year signed an agreement in which China wanted Malaysia to send a hundred 40-foot containers of pineapples monthly. It would begin with one container weekly of 20 tonnes of pineapples and the number was supposed to increase to 100 containers monthly by 2015.
“China is expected to become our biggest importer of pineapple taking over from Singapore and Middle East countries which are now our main export markets,’’ he said.
To cope with the demand, Sahdan said the Government would increase the existing 15,000ha of areas planted with pineapples to 24,000ha by 2020.
