KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 (Bernama) — The Malaysia Palm Oil Board’s (MPOB) collaboration with a plantation company, Kulim (Malaysia) Bhd has successfully produced the latest oil palm planting material, known as Clonal Palm Series 3 (CPS3).
According to the MPOB, CPS3 is a quality palm oil clone capable of increasing productivity and higher yields of fresh fruit bunches (FFB).
“CPS3 is among the series of planting materials developed by MPOB offered for commercial cultivation by estates and smallholders,” it said in a statement today, adding that the technology was unveiled during MPOB’s Transfer of Technology Seminar and Exhibition 2020 in July.
Its head of research team, Siti Rahmah Abdul Rahman said the CPS3 planting material planted at a Kulim (Malaysia) Bhd estate has recorded higher productivity of FFB and oil yield per hectare than the conventional dura and pisifera (DxP) hybrid material.
The CPS3 clonal material delivers high productivity by maximising yield per hectare.
“The CPS3 clone, which is planted in a density of 136 palms per hectare, produces 37.5 per cent oil per bunch (O/B) with 221.7 kilograms (kg) of FFB per palm within a year. The ratio of O/B and FFB of CPS3 clones are 21.8 per cent and 7.6 per cent, respectively, higher than commercially grown DxP in Malaysia,” according to Siti Rahmah.
She said the characteristics of CPS3 fits the ideal combination of producing approximately 15 bunches a year and weighing 15kg as recommended by oil palm breeders.
Besides, the CPS3 clone has managed to produce 11.3 tonnes of oil per hectare per year compared with 8.6 tonnes per hectare per year for the best DxP hybrid, she said.
Siti Rahmah added that CPS3 superior clonal planting material is ready for commercialisation by oil palm plantations and for seed producers to propagate clonal breeds in their respective tissue culture laboratories.
— BERNAMA