Many problems of the world now look to AI for answers. The global waste issue, which has grown increasingly complex, deploys AI to better organize the collection and eventual treatment at waste processing facilities. The monitoring of pollution, especially of rivers and waterways, uses remote sensing technology to capture images which are then deciphered using AI. The same satellite imaging technology is used to monitor the forests, looking for cases of illegal logging. Manufacturing deploys AI extensively to increase productivity as well as improve product quality. The other area which deploys AI extensively is data analytics. This involves analyzing the vast amount of data to better understand market trends and consumer choices. Social media is a major source of such data. Retail businesses are actively using AI to make business sense of the data.
Increasingly, agriculture is also looking to AI to resolve many of its challenges. The palm oil industry has been eyeing AI for some time now to resolve some of its productivity and marketing issues. Palm oil’s consumer perception issue continues to linger on despite the many steps taken by the industry. The industry remains preoccupied with the battle to neutralize the spread of fakes and untruths about palm oil. It is good to hear that the Ministry of Plantations is going on an offensive to deal with the challenge. It is about time too, as the industry has been defensive for far too long. Kudos to the Ministry.
Productivity has emerged as a more daunting challenge in recent times for the palm oil industry. We are talking about crop losses which have denied the industry of much revenue. At the current high price of palm oil, touching RM5000 per ton, unharvested oil palm fruits have resulted in billions of ringgit in losses. Labour shortage has been largely the reason why large tracts of oil palms have not been harvested. But it is not just labor that has contributed to the losses. It is also about harvesting at the right time when the fruits are optimally ripe. The loose fruits technique which is widely used to decide harvesting time is not fully reliable. One can see evidence of a high percentage of unripe fruits at the mills. Unripe means low oil content. AI can definitely play a role here. The issue of labor is not recent. For a long time, there has been concern that the industry has been over-dependent on foreign labor. The pandemic has exacerbated the situation. This is where AI together with robotics and drones can help.
Palm oil needs the right strategy to effectively embrace AI. R&D is central to the strategy. Through MPOB, the industry should invest in a center dedicated to the development of AI in the entire spectrum of palm oil production, from plantation down to processing and the manufacture of value-added products and logistics. Through the use of AI, the industry can better monitor the sustainability performance of the industry, including the impact on GHG emissions and capture. As pressures of climate concerns continue to bear on the industry, AI can help positively position the environmental image of the industry. In fact with the adoption of AI and other related digitalize technologies, more young people may be more attracted to work in the industry. AI is seen as a real game-changer for the palm oil industry.
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