Palm oil prices good for farmers, exec says

Business

By PETER ESILA
OUTGOING general manager of Hargy Oil Palms Limited David Mather said recent palm oil prices would benefit farmers.
“When I left the prices were at historic highs,” he said.
“The result is everyone is benefitting however, the cost of production is also increasing with significant increases in fuel prices that is happening everywhere, fertiliser, logistics etc…”
Hargy operates only in West New Britain, in the new electorate of Nakanai.
According to the New Britain Palm Oil Limited (NBPOL) the fresh fruit bunch (FFB) price on April 6 at the mill gate was K904.72 per ton and K845.94 per ton for farm gate.
This month’s NBPOL FFB price stands at K853.64 at the mill gate and K793.29 at the farm gate.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Livestock, in PNG, oil palm is the major revenue earner in the agriculture sector followed by coffee, cocoa, copra, rubber and tea. It contributed about K5.4 billion in export revenue from 2014 to 2018 where the country produced about 2.8 billion tonnes of palm oil.