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KUCHING – The Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry wants all hotels in Malaysia to use local pepper.
Minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin said the Malaysian Pepper Board (MPB) is targeting the diversification of pepper-based products so that their global trade revenue will increase.
“They have a set of pepper and salt in hotels, so we can boost the selling of Sarawak pepper if we can do that in our country.
“At the moment, the product line of pepper is still limited to ground pepper and berries (peppercorns).
“MPB is responsible for ensuring there is enough pepper supply and is looking at ways to diversify their products, for example, as ingredients for ‘laksa Sarawak’,” she said after relaunching SaraSpice Sdn Bhd here today.
Meanwhile, Zuraida said MPB subsidiary SaraSpice Sdn Bhd has the potential to increase the value of its pepper products’ orders to RM30 million from June onwards compared to RM13 million orders in the first six months of this year.
She added that the MPB would work with pepper farmers to set up a “mini estate” model to increase pepper cultivation on a small scale.
“MPB will engage with smallholders to get their views before developing a model for ‘mini estate’. Currently, the country’s pepper plantation covers 7,700 hectares of land,” she said. – Bernama, August 25, 2022