The Strict Quality Control of Oil Palm Seed Production – Fruitful Foundation for Planters

(The mandarin version of this article is published in Alam Pertanian, issue 8, 2010. This article is translated from mandarin to English by SSH)
(The Bahasa Malaysia version of this article is also published in Info Pertanian, issue 8, 2010)

Preface

The strict operation of seed production laboratory owned by Applied Agricultural Resources Sdn. Bhd. (AAR, the famous seed producer in Malaysia) as well as the distinguishing feature of AA Hybrida 1 (the main brand of it’s superior oil palm seeds) were introduced in the previous issue of Alam Pertanian (issue 7). Consequently, the reader understands that the process of oil palm seed variety improvement is obtained from the combination of the excellent characteristics of various traits through plant breeding technique.

AA Hybrida 1 originates from the mature fresh fruit bunch of mother palms. With careful management including manual pollination and strict operation, the fresh fruit bunches are delivered to AAR seed production laboratory after harvesting. Next, the oil palm seeds produced from seed production laboratory will be delivered to the purchaser. This article describes the procedures in the seed production laboratory with the illustration of pictures.

1 . The harvested fresh fruit bunches in the plastic barrel are delivered to the seed production laboratory.	2 . The plastic barrels are arranged neatly.
3 . The fresh fruit bunch is being sent to the detaching machine in order to remove the fruits from the bunch.	4 . The fresh fruit bunch dropped into the detaching machine.
5 . The fruits extracted from the detaching machine.	6 . The empty bunch left in the detaching machine.
7 . The fruits collected are placed into the depericarper in order to extract the seeds from the mesocarps.	8 . The stripped mesocarps are released from the machine.
9 . The seeds extracted from the machine.	10 . The seeds are soaked in the water for 4 days in order to increase the moisture level.
11 . The seeds are air-dried by fan.	12. The seeds are kept in the hot room with the temperature of 40 degrees Celcius for 60 days.
13. The seeds are sent to germination room.	14. The selection of good quality oil palm seeds.
15. The process of counting 250 seeds for packing in each packet.	16. The last stage of germinated seed selection.
17. The boxes for shipping the oil palm seeds to the customers are sealed for security purpose.	18. Rejected seeds are smashed by using machine to reduce the risk of re-sale in the market.
19. The picture shows rejected seeds after the smashing process. They can be used for other purposes.	AAR Seed Production Manager, Mr. Ng. Woo Jian, Plant Breeder, Mr. Wong Choo Kian and Miss Liew Yee Row, AAR Paloh Substation Manager, Mr Kumar Krishnan. (from left to right)
The collected empty fruit bunches are used for mulching.	The picture shows the collected solid waste.
The collected solid waste in the barrel can be used for other purpose.	The wastewater management system of AAR effectively treats the wastewater generated from seed production.
The wastewater after treatment will be flowed into oil palm field to supply to the oil palm tree.

Conclusion

The security system in AAR seed production laboratory is strict with CCTV installed in each department for security and safety purpose. Outsiders are not allowed to enter the laboratory and photography is strictly prohibited. The operating procedures and methods are published so the planters are all aware and mindful towards the oil palm seed production and quality control of the company.

Apart from that, the laboratory also adopts an environmental friendly system to resolve residues from seed production. For instance, the waste water can be reused after the purification process whereas the sewage is flowed back into the oil palm fields. On the other hand, the empty fruit bunches (EFB) and fibre substances are used for mulching purposes. The whole cycle is complete and environmentally friendly. This proves to be a good example of the green industry. All this can only bear fruit through the efforts from AAR Seed Production Manager, Mr. Ng Woo Jian who conducted this with proper planning and implementation. This goes to show his persistence towards the strict operating procedures in producing genuine and high quality oil palm seeds which in the end benefits the planters.