REJUVENATING THE MALAYSIAN PINEAPPLE INDUSTRY

In Malaysia, pineapple is the first crop grown as a commodity or industrial crop with high export potential. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Malaysia was the number three exporter in the world for canned pineapple. However, its ability to remain competitive suffered tremendous setback. While other industrial crops, particularly rubber and oil palm gained accelerated momentum in their development, pineapple did not follow the pattern. During the last three decades (1973-2003), the Malaysian pineapple industry had deteriorated. The total planted areas for pineapples have decreased by 52% from 13,267 ha in 1973 to 6,434 in 2003. The decline was most significant in the smallholder sector which experienced a decrease from 8,498 ha in 1973 to 1,366 ha in 2002. In the estate sector, the planted areas have increased by 211 ha, but have remained static at 5,000 ha from 1990 to 2004. The export value of canned pineapples decreased from RM 52.0 million in 1997 to RM 32.0 million in 2008. Despite the fact that Malaysia’s pineapple industry declined, the industry including the trading of neighboring countries, particularly Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia and globally in general, continue to develop and expand. This, consequently, suggests that the pineapple industry in Malaysia has good potential to escalate. This paper addresses the strategies of reviving the pineapple industry and trading in Malaysia.