FGV’s motto of ‘Cultivating a Sustainable Future’ describes its mission of ‘RE-Defining’ the group into an organisation that champions sustainable foods and agriproducts for generations to come.
FROM wholesome fresh milk and farm-to-table produce to everyday cooking ingredients like cooking oil, margarine, and refined sugar, the mission to provide Malaysians with quality and affordable food products has never been stronger.
Over the decade, FGV Holdings Berhad (FGV) has come to be an important player in the Malaysian economy beyond contributing to national income and employment— even more so with the looming food security agenda at home.
2023 has been marked by a series of moments that demonstrate FGV’s ongoing commitment to moving Malaysia forward towards the future.
Empowering local smallholders
The group is the biggest off-taker of smallholders’ FFB (fresh fruit bunches) in Malaysia, with 70% of its processed FFB derived from Felda settlers and independent smallholders throughout the country— at a price set by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB).
On the group level beyond plantations, it is overseeing multiple sectors in comparison to other market players, with its diverse portfolios serving as opportunities and strengths to be optimised. 2023 saw the group’s continued efforts in educating independent smallholders and FFB suppliers on Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) and the Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) sustainability certifications and best practices.
The FGV-led consultation programmes that were started in January 2020 are aligned with the government’s call to have all palm oil entrepreneurs in the country certified.
FGV group chief executive officer Datuk Nazrul Mansor (middle) receiving the award from Kantar Malaysia and Thailand managing director Howard Chang, with Kantar Malaysia business development director Daniel Lee (left), FGV downstream head Zulkifli Othman (second from right) and Delima Oil Products Sdn Bhd CEO Shammim Azad Kamruzaman (right) present.
Supporting food security
FGV is fully committed to meeting the demand for quality, nourishing and affordable products in the market through its various consumer goods brands, namely Saji, Adela, Seri Pelangi, Gula Prai, Ladang’57 and Bright Cow.
It aims to play a significant role in the country’s national food security agenda by bringing high quality and nutritious food products at affordable prices to all Malaysians and to achieve the vision of delivering sustainable foods and agriproducts to the world.
Horeca fragrant rice: In collaboration with the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry in the Large-Scale Smart Paddy Field programme (Smart SBB), FGV continues its efforts in the Fortified Field Fragrant Rice (3FR) programme in 2023.
The programme is a comprehensive planting system that integrates paddy farming activities through smart agriculture practices, mechanisation, automation and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies.
To date, it has been working with more than 361 contract rice farmers in Selangor who cultivate more than 690 hectares of fragrant rice plots in North West Selangor and Seberang Perak.
Ladang’57 Ayam Kampung: Ladang’57 Ayam Kampung was launched in August to meet local demand for fresh, quality, free-range chicken that are affordably priced.
It collaborated with its retail and distribution partner, Aeon Big (M) Sdn Bhd (Aeon Big), to market the Ladang’57 Ayam Kampung in 21 Aeon Big hypermarkets throughout Peninsular Malaysia.
Bright Cow Acerola Yogurt and UHT Milk: FGV entered the local dairy scene in 2020 by offering a range of milk-based products such as fresh milk, UHT milk, flavoured kefir, milk yogurt, yogurt drinks and cheese products.
Its dairy brand, Bright Cow, has expanded its reach to 5,000 new retail locations across the nation via appointments of new distribution agents in July.
Celebrating a homegrown brand
Saji is synonymous with cooking oil in Malaysia and continues to see growth in the consumer segment. The last decade saw Saji achieve 177% growth in Consumer Reach Points (CRP), surging from 8.9 million in 2012 to 24.7 million in 2021.
It was recognised as the “Top outstanding brand with the most incremental shoppers in 2022” by world leading consumer data, insights and consulting company Kantar in July this year.
The BrandLaureate has awarded Saji with the Sustainable BestBrand award for consumer products. Saji’s National Month campaign video this year entitled, Perajurit Dapur won a gold at the Kancil Awards for “Best Bahasa Malaysia Copywriting, Content Writing and Scriptwriting: Single” category.
The campaign and video were dedicated to the unsung culinary heroes in our daily lives, recognising their unwavering loyalty and support that made Saji a success.
Exploring new frontiers
FGV’s established brands explore new markets across the globe, with the group’s premium cooking oil and margarine brand, Adela. It expanded its presence in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) market with Adela Margarine in February at Gulfood 2023 in Dubai.
This market is poised for growth, with huge opportunities in hypermarkets, convenience stores, and e-retail markets.
Committed to sustainability
Sustainability is not just a corporate buzzword for FGV, it is at the forefront of its business. It is committed to respecting human rights, protecting the environment and promoting economic growth, particularly towards the communities it serves.
This commitment is expressed via a 3D-animated video that shows the group as it journeys towards a more sustainable future and was released in September during the National Month celebration.
Environmental protection: This year, FGV included “nurturing nature” as part of its sustainability journey, which started with forest conservation efforts in Gerik, Perak.
Through fruitful collaboration and careful coordination with the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) dan Malaysia Nature Society (MNS), it endeavoured to preserve the habitat of endangered endemic wildlife such as the sun bear, gibbons and pangolins.
350 hectares of land underwent reforestation efforts that involved planting 10,000 fruit-variant tree seedlings sourced from a local nursery owned by the Orang Asal.
To progress green logistics in Malaysia, the group secured 54 units of eco-friendly Euro 5 Prime Movers from Volvo Trucks Malaysia in June, which contributes to the group’s commitment towards sustainable practices.
Honouring human rights: FGV has successfully completed the third phase of its recruitment fees reimbursement on September 15, which is part of the remediation process in relation to the Withhold Release Order (WRO) by the US Customs and Border Protection department (USCBP).
A total of RM72.2mil was disbursed to 19,673 FGV migrant workers in three separate tranches: in March, June and September.
FGV has also implemented various initiatives to enhance the welfare and well-being of its migrant workers, including investing approximately RM227mil to enhance the workers’ facilities.
Recognising ESG: FGV was honoured by the ESG Positive Impact Awards 2023 when it was awarded gold in the “Renewable energy category by a large company” category for its efforts in generating renewable energy (biomass) produced in its palm oil mills.
It has managed to leverage the waste generated by its palm oil mills to produce renewable energy and reduce its carbon footprint. Currently, FGV is also venturing into Rooftop Grid Connected Photovoltaic (GCPV) as well as Off-Grid Photovoltaic (OGPV) in its operations.
Hearts and minds
In the spirit of inclusivity and improvement, the group believes in celebrating its people and their accomplishments.
FGV’s biofuel business in Kuantan was awarded with the Malaysia Brand Leadership Awards 2023 by the World Brand Congress. The World HRD Congress on the other hand has recognised FGV with the “Malaysia best employer brand 2023” and “Top most HR leaders Malaysia” awards.
FGV’s corporate zakat contributions amounting to RM35.3mil benefitted underprivileged communities from Perlis to Sabah in urban and rural areas.
In the spirit of Rahmah, FGV has been engaging with B40 communities across Kuala Lumpur with FGV Seikhlas Hati packs since April 2023.
Over 10,000 units of FGV Seikhlas Hati packs have been sold at a low price of RM10, each comprising basic food items, such as 2kg cooking oil, 500g sweetened creamer, 200g coconut cream from Saji and 1kg packet sugar from Gula Prai.
On Dec 15, FGV launched an upsized Sukuk Murabahah programme of RM3bil and received an AA-investment grade corporate rating from Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad with a stable outlook.
Present in mind, future in sight
FGV recognises and embraces its history and role within corporate Malaysia since charting its journey in 2012.
It anticipates a promising 2024, while being true to its mission of “RE-Defining” FGV as a company that champions sustainable foods and agriproducts for generations to come.
For more on FGV, check out the new corporate video on FGV Holding’s Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, LinkedIn and YouTube, or at www.fgvholdings.com.
