On Thursday, 9 January 2025, YB Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, Minister of Plantation and Commodities, Malaysia, arrived for a three-day official visit to Karachi to attend the 7th Pakistan Edible Oils Conference (PEOC). The Honourable Minister was accompanied by His Excellency Amb. Dato’ Mohammad Azhar Mazlan, High Commissioner of Malaysia to Pakistan, and Mr. Herman Hardyanta Ahmad, Consul General of Malaysia in Karachi. PEOC was attended by approximately 450 stakeholders from the oils and fats industry, as well as food industry players from Pakistan, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The conference, organized by edible oil associations, took place on 11 January 2025.
During the inaugural ceremony, His Excellency Rana Tanveer Hussain, Federal Minister for Industries and Production/National Food Security and Research, highlighted Pakistan's importance as a market for edible oils and oilseeds. He emphasized the government’s commitment to maximizing indigenous edible oil production, which currently accounts for 19% of local demand. The Minister noted that Pakistan imports approximately 3 million tons of palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia. He assured attendees that the government is taking significant steps to enhance local production, including incentivizing farmers to achieve this goal.
He also underscored Pakistan’s potential in the oilseed crushing industry, which not only produces edible oil for local use but also provides meal for the poultry sector. The Minister shared that Pakistan’s crushing industry has significantly increased value addition, creating opportunities to export soya-meal and canola-meal globally. He invited investment from Malaysia, Indonesia, and other countries to further develop Pakistan's infrastructure projects, which would enhance its capabilities and facilitate international trade.
Rana Tanveer Hussain expressed his gratitude to the Malaysian Minister, Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, for his participation in the conference and expressed a desire to strengthen bilateral trade ties between Malaysia and Pakistan.
In his keynote address, the Honourable Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani highlighted the growing bilateral relationship between Pakistan and Malaysia, which has deepened following the Malaysian Prime Minister’s state visit in October 2024. He shared that Malaysia’s palm oil exports are valued at USD20 billion and support the livelihoods of 1 million people. Malaysia’s total palm oil production stands at 90.3 million metric tons, making it the second-largest producer of edible oil after Indonesia. The Minister emphasized the indispensability of palm oil on a global scale, noting that Pakistan imported 798,000 tons of palm oil from Malaysia.
