FERTILIZER REQUIREMENTS AND PRACTICES OF THE PLANTATION

INDUSTRY IN MALAYSIA1
Razman Abdul Raof1; Mohd Hashim Tajudin 2; Ooi Ling Hoak3 and Tang Men Kon4
Felda Agricultural Services 1; Golden Hope Plantation2; Applied Agricultural Research3 and
Sime Darby Plantations (EBOR Research)4, Malaysia

Introduction

Fertilizer application is essential in Malaysian agriculture as it plays a major role in improving growth and
yields in our highly leached infertile acid tropical soils. Vast areas are cultivated with perennial tree crops like
oil palm where large quantities of fertilizers are required annually to sustain high crop yields and ultimately
profitability.
2
Malaysia has a total land area of 329,733 km . The projected 1999 areas cultivated with industrial crops, that
is, oil palm, rubber, cocoa and paddy, amounted to 5.53 million hectares. Of this, oil palm accounts for
approximately 50% of the cultivated areas (Table 1).

Table 1 - Area cultivated with industrial crops in Malaysia

Crop Hectares (million)

Oil Palm 2.8
Rubber 1.6
Paddy 0.65
Cocoa 0.15
Source: Department of Agriculture Statistics, 1998

Large plantation companies have a crop mix of oil palm and rubber, with the latter being rapidly replaced with
oil palm in view of the current poor rubber prices. The total oil palm hectarage in the different planting sectors
is shown in Table 2:

Table 2 - Oil palm areas cultivated by various planting sectors and organizations in 1998

Sector Hectarage Percentage

Private Estates 1,318,778 50.42
Government Agencies (Smallholders)
FELDA 683,538 26.14
FELCRA 134,059 5.13
RISDA 39,685 1.52
State Land Schemes 197,287 7.57
Independent Smallholders 241,287 9.22
Total Smallholders 1,296,491 49.48
TOTAL 2,615,269 100.00
Source: Porim Bulletin 36, 1998

The well-organized private estate and smallholder sectors under the various Government agencies account
for 1.32 million and 1.05 million hectares respectively or more than 90% of the total oil palm area.
Consequently, these oil palm companies and organizations are the major consumers and buyers of fertilizer
in Malaysia.

1
Paper presented at the IFA Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 14-17 November 1999
 e
The country’s historical fertilizer consumption (tonnes) including an estimate for 1999 and trend are shown in
Table 3 and Figures 1 and 2:

Table 3 - Fertilizer consumption for Malaysia (1986-1999)

Nutrient n 1986 1989 1992 1995 1998 1999*

N 180,817 264,593 271,949 365,363 391,869 431,056

K 312,393 425,634 532,220 692,430 746,977 806,735
P 132,683 163,947 178,324 233,392 261,422 274,498
Total NPK 625,893 854,174 982,493 1,291,635 1,400,268 1,512,289
Mg 16,710 16,475 33,624 38,227 52,729 54,500
Source: Malaysian Agricultural Directory & Index 1999/2000, IFA FADINAP and internal estimate*
n

Figure 1 - N and K Fertilizer consumption trend for Malaysia

Malaysian Fertilizer Consumption Trend 1986 - 1999

Nitrogen and Potassium
o

1,000,000

900,000

800,000

700,000

600,000 N
500,000 K
t

400,000

300,000

200,000

100,000

0
1986 1989 1992 1995 1998 1999
Year

ifa1
 n
Figure 2 - P and Mg Fertilizer consumption trend in Malaysia

Malaysian Fertilizer Consumption Trend 1986 - 1999

Phosphorus and Magnesium

300,000
o

250,000

200,000
P
150,000 Mg
t

100,000

50,000

0
1986 1989 1992 1995 1998 1999
Year

ifa2

It can be observed that Malaysian fertilizer consumption has steadily increased. This can be attributed to the
changes in the Malaysian agricultural scenario. As more rubber areas were replanted with oil palm, the
fertilizer requirement was also increased as oil palm requires more nutrients than rubber. In addition, new
land were planted mainly with oil palm.

Fertilizer Selection and Evaluation by Large Plantation Organizations

Oil palm is the main crop cultivated by the large plantation organizations. Of the inputs, fertilizers accounts
for about 24 % of the total agricultural cost of fresh fruit bunch (FFB) production (Tan, 1988; Nazeeb, 1997).
However, with the significant depreciation of the Malaysian Ringgit against the US Dollar since 1997, the
cost of fertilizer input has increased further. Hence, the choice and use of fertilizer has become more
important, not only in terms of costs of production, but also the likely responses and returns from their
applications in the field.

From its early days, the plantation industry has recognised the importance of good palm nutrition. It has
invested greatly in research into nutrient requirements of the oil palm and has adopted a multi-disciplinary
approach to assessing fertilizer needs of the crop including intensive studies on palm nutrition (nutrient
balance and cycling, nutrient diagnosis techniques) and physiology, soils and soil fertility, and interactions
with management practices. Many field trials have also been laid down over the past 40 years to establish
response curves to the various nutrients on different soils and sites, to evaluate the different nutrient sources
and fertilizers, timing and methods of fertilizer application.

Most agronomists are now applying site-specific fertilizer application practices to maximize returns from
fertilizer usage and to reduce any potential environmental problems. Considerable field data e.g. soil types
and fertility, palm growth and yields are collected from each manuring block, usually between 20 to 50
hectares. The leaf nutrient levels are regularly checked as well for early detection of any possible
deficiencies.

Each block in the estate is inspected annually to assess the nutrient requirements and fertilizer
recommendations i.e. fertilizer types, rates and schedules drawn up for application. The choice of fertilizers
are determined by the fertilizer types available and their physical and chemical properties, their prices in
relation to the expected available nutrients, rate and method of application adopted (manually by hand,
mechanical spreader, holing or aerial application), and age of palms based on the numerous fertilizer trials
on oil palm to evaluate their efficacy and profitability (Ng, 1977; Hew et al., 1973; Foster & Goh, 1977;
Foster, 1982; Foster et al., 1986 ).

Generally, the fertilizers used in oil palm cultivation in Malaysia can be grouped into five broad categories,
which are, ‘straights’, mixtures, compounds, slow and/or controlled release, and organic and/or by-product
fertilizers (Tang et al., 1999 ). The first three are the most common groups of fertilizers used by the
plantations. In mature palms, straight fertilizers provide the bulk of the four macronutrients required for oil
palms i.e. nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg). Compound fertilizers are used
mainly in immature palms while mixtures are preferred where savings in application rounds may be made
e.g. in sandy soil areas or to save on costs of compound fertilizers.

The common sources of nitrogen being used in this country are ammonium sulfate (21% N), ammonium
nitrate (26% N), ammonium chloride (25% N) and urea (46% N). Trials have shown little difference in FFB
yield responses to them except for urea, which produced comparable results only under adequate moisture
conditions and on clay soils ( Hew & Tam, 1971; Ng, 1977; Sinasamy et al., 1982; Tarmizi et al., 1993 ).
Urea is not recommended generally because of its high N volatilization and expected high variability in N
uptake. Generally, the choice of N fertilizers is primarily determined by the effective unit N cost. In recent
years, the cheapest N sources for oil palm in Malaysia have been ammonium chloride and ammonium nitrate
but problems with caking of fine crystalline ammonium chloride have caused it to fall out of favour.

The main sources of phosphorus are phosphate rock, superphosphate and diammonium phosphate (DAP).
The water soluble superphosphate P source is commonly applied to palms at the immature stage in the form
of compound fertilizers. However, by far the largest usage is as phosphate rocks which are effective on our
acid soils and more economical for use in mature palms. In this region, the oil palm is one such crop where
phosphate rock has been extensively used as a source of P. The same goes for rubber and cocoa. The
various phosphate rocks in current use vary widely in physical, chemical, mineralogical and reactivity
characteristics. For application in oil palm, phosphate rocks are finely ground to improve their solubility but
there are also some P sources which show higher ‘reactivity’ even in the ungrounded form e.g. North
Carolina Rock Phosphate, Tunisian Rock Phosphate. These ‘reactive’ rocks generally come with lower P2O5
content which to the producer is not the ideal source for phosphoric acid production and there is thus great
potential to ship such rocks for use in this region.

The choice of K fertilizers is usually limited to Muriate of Potash (MoP) which is mainly obtained from
Canada, USA, Russia and Jordan. The grades and quality from the various sources are fairly standard.
Potassium nitrate and potassium sulfate are used only in the compound form for the nursery stage seedlings.

The most common sources of Mg fertilizer used in Malaysia are kieserite and ground magnesium limestone
(GML). The latter is available locally, and effective and cheap when used under the correct agronomic
conditions (Goh et al., 1998). A new source of magnesium, synthetic magnesium sulfate, has also made its
presence in the Malaysian market. This material is obtained by treating dolomite or magnesite with industrial
sulfuric acids. The effectiveness of this new material on oil palm is currently being investigated (Tang et al.,
1999) but it has already been widely used based on its water soluble Mg content.

Fertilizer mixtures, produced by simple physical mixing of the straight fertilizers, have the advantage of being
prepared according to specified ratios to suit particular situations as needed. This enables the major
macronutrients to be applied together at lower cost and with fewer application rounds.

Most, if not all, of the compound fertilizers used by plantation companies in Malaysia are in granulated form.
It is common knowledge that the cost of compound fertilizer is higher than the three straight fertilizers
supplying the equivalent quantity of nutrients. Hence, compound fertilizers usage in plantation companies is
limited to the nursery and young, immature oil palm areas.

Boron is the only micronutrient of general significance to oil palm to date, and the sources are mainly from
the various forms of sodium borate (Na2B4O7.xH2O). The other micronutrients, principally copper and zinc
are used mainly in peat or very sandy areas and are normally applied in the form of their sulfate salts
respectively. Iron and manganese salts are applied in isolated cases only.

Fertilizer Procurement System by Large Plantation Organizations

The purchasing system of the large plantation organizations in Malaysia can be broadly categorized into
three types; open tender, government central purchase, and close quote system.

(i) Open Tender System

In this system, the fertilizer requirement of an organization is purchased by inviting all suppliers to
participate and quote for the materials. Invitations to quote are advertised in the national newspapers.
The Felda group is an example of such an organization that practices an open tender system.

Historically, the tenders are called annually, but over the last two years, they have been done at least on
a half yearly basis. Tenders are normally called in the third quarter of the preceding year and the first
quarter of the current year.

Upon selection, orders are issued to the successful bidders and the fertilizer is requested to be
delivered in the required month. Selection criteria of the successful bidder are based mainly on price
and capability of the supplier.

(ii) Government Central Purchase System

In this system, the fertilizer purchase is coordinated by the Treasury Department, whereby suppliers,
who are registered, are invited to supply fertilizer to the various government and semi-government
bodies such as the Department of Agriculture and FELCRA. The Treasury will issue the orders to the
successful suppliers, who will then deliver the fertilizers to the respective organizations. Payments are
either made by the Treasury or in certain cases, by the respective organizations themselves.

(iii) Close Quote System

The close quote system is adopted mainly by the private plantation groups. These groups, either
through their headquarters or individual estates, will invite selected fertilizer suppliers to give them a
price quote. These suppliers are normally those who have a steady and long-term relationship with the
organization. Upon negotiation, orders are then issued for the fertilizers to be delivered to the respective
estates. The frequency of calling for quotes may vary, but is at least twice yearly for most groups.

Expected Performance From Fertilizer Suppliers

As a group, the plantation companies form a major customer base for fertilizer suppliers in the country.
Although the specifications and expectations of individual companies may vary, there are similarities in the
expectations of the supplier’s performance by these companies.

The nutrient contents and physical properties of the fertilizers to be supplied are generally requested in the
submission of price quotes.

Timeliness of Delivery

In this country, most, if not all, of the estates do not have a large centralized storage facility. In most
instances, like in the Felda estates, there is only a small store that can accommodate about 80 to 150 tonnes
of fertilizers.

True to the ‘Just In Time’ (JIT) concept, these organizations expect that all the fertilizers delivered to the
estates are applied to the field as soon as possible. Many studies have proven that efficiency of nutrient
uptake and responses in growth and yield of the crop are dependent on the timely application of fertilizers.
Thus, when orders are issued, it is expected that the fertilizers are to be delivered by the supplier according
to the schedule prescribed. Normally, the fertilizers are expected to be delivered to the estates in the month
that they are expected to be applied to the field.

On the other hand, some fertilizer suppliers may also have limitation in terms of their storage and production
capacity. The common need by all suppliers is that they have to move their material out as soon as they are
produced or available to maximize output and reduce holding cost. Warehousing will add expenses in the
form of product shrinkage, handling, personnel and space cost. Ideally, the suppliers would like to deliver the
fertilizers as soon as possible.

When the timing of the demand by the estates and the supply of materials from the supplier do not match, it
is inevitable that delay occurs. To overcome this, both buyer and seller have to work out the most
satisfactory period of delivery.

Some of the factors that have contributed to the delays are outlined below:

(i) Procurement System

The nature of the procurement system of an organization, to a certain extent, can sometimes cause
delay in delivery. In ideal situations, sufficient lead time should be given to the suppliers when orders
are issued to them. The suppliers, being prudent, would not keep high stocks of the material. They will
approach their principals to get the quantity requested only when orders are received.

However, there have been instances where the lead time given is insufficient. In such cases, delivery of
materials from the suppliers’ principals takes longer than the time given. This may be due to the longer
than normal time taken to issue orders after quotes have been submitted by the fertilizer supplier.

(ii) Natural Causes

Delivery of fertilizers can sometimes be delayed due to rain and flood. Most of the plantation estates
are located in the interior of the country. The roads and other infrastructures leading to and within
these estates are constructed mainly for agricultural use. In the tropics, the rain can cause severe
damage to these infrastructures. In certain instances, floods and associated landslides can render
some estates inaccessible. When this happens, delivery of fertilizers have to be postponed.

(iii) Religious Events and Festivals

During these events, activities are normally reduced to the minimal. Labourers are released and
activities such as manuring take a backstage. In these cases, delivery of fertilizers is mostly postponed
till the season is over. It is of national interest too, that deliveries are postponed, so that there are fewer
lorries on the road during these festive and religious periods, when the roads are normally heavy with
festive traffic.

(iv) Storage Facilities

Consumption by end users does not usually match the quantity of fertilizers delivered. End users have a
store at site which can usually accommodate 80 to 150 tonnes of fertilizers. Fertilizer suppliers can
deliver on average 25-30 tonnes of fertilizer per lorry to the user. When the fertilizers in the store cannot
be applied to the field due to rain, labour unavailability or other reasons, the end users cannot accept
more quantities. Thus further deliveries by the supplier have to be postponed and delayed.

(v) Availability of Applicators

In recent years as a result of labour shortage, organizations have resorted to other fertilizer application
methods such as by aerial or mechanical spreading. In these cases, the estates will maintain constant
communication with the fertilizer suppliers regarding the delivery of fertilizers. It is inevitable that delays
will happen when there is equipment breakdown.
Both the suppliers and plantation companies have to try and resolve these problems through improved
communication and information as discussed later.

Fertilizer Bag Quality

The packaging material used to deliver fertilizers to estates seldom receive the attention as it should be.
Users tend to be satisfied when fertilizers are delivered in bags that are sufficiently sewn and there are no
breakages or torn bags.

In this country, fertilizers delivered to the end users come in various packaging. The most common is in 50
kg bags. For the purpose of aerial manuring, fertilizers are either delivered in 500 kg bags or in loose or bulk
form.

The packaging material for the 50 kg bag is normally made of woven polypropylene and a polythene inner
liner. The specification for the packaging material is normally indicated by the purchaser during invitation to
quote.

Fertilizer Quality

The requirements to which a fertilizer should conform, as agreed upon between the buyer and supplier, are
normally used in the contract between the buyer and supplier. Given the wide variety of materials that can be
used as a source of plant nutrients, virtually an unlimited number of products can be called and labeled as
‘fertilizers’. The specifications serve to ensure agreement on product characteristics and define the product in
sufficient detail to effect satisfaction of both parties.

The specifications for a particular type of fertilizer required by an organization are issued during invitation to
bid. This normally includes the following:

a. nutrient content(s) and concentration(s)

b. nutrient chemical composition
c. moisture content
d. particle size
e. physical condition
f. solubility and/or availability
g. packaging details.

Usually when the buyer issues invitation to bid, the supplier tries to meet all the items listed as the
specification required. In certain cases, the supplier will include exceptions with his bids, informing the buyer
that the product offered is not to the specifications and the buyer is being offered an alternative.

Most specifications, however, are concerned with subjects as adherence to guaranteed analysis within
specified limits of tolerance; guaranteed weights; identification of product source; and specification of grades,
nutrients and methods of sampling and analysis.

In this country, standard specifications for various fertilizers are set by the Standard and Industrial Research
Institute of Malaysia (SIRIM). These standards not only specify the minimum nutrient contents of a particular
type of fertilizer but also spell out the sampling and analysis procedures.

Off-specification materials are those that do not conform or meet the specifications agreed between the
buyer and supplier. Some of the off-specifications are fertilizers containing high moisture content, mixtures
and compound fertilizers which do not conform to their stated nutrient composition, and phosphate rock and
GML which are not sufficiently ground. Incidences of phosphate rocks with sub-standard citric acid
solubilities have also been encountered.
The method of fertilizer application also requires specific physical property from the fertilizer. Thus fertilizers
for mechanical and aerial manuring should be free flowing and of a suitable range of particle size for ease of
distribution. ‘Wet’ fertilizers are not possible for application under mechanical and aerial manuring.

Suppliers should also take adequate precaution to prevent the caking of fertilizers via better storage and
packaging. Some of the fertilizers in this category are ammonium nitrate, ammonium chloride, urea and
certain mixtures.

Improving Logistics

Arrival time of fertilizers at estates may vary considerably and unloading of fertilizers at the estate is currently
by manual means. This is labourious and time consuming and reduces turn-around time of the transporters.
Supplier and buyer should work together to find solutions to these problems in future.

Regulations and Penalties

Most large plantation organizations have their own in-house laboratory and personnel to conduct physical
and chemical analysis on the fertilizers delivered by their suppliers, thus performing and ensuring the quality
control checking on the fertilizers.

Off-specification material delivered will normally be returned. For deviations from the grades stated,
deduction in amount equivalent to a value higher than the deficient nutrient quantity will be imposed by the
buyer to deter recurrence. Fines such as late delivery penalties are effected if the supplier is unable to
deliver. Black listing suppliers from participating in future bids is applied to those who deviate significantly
from the agreed terms. The enforcement of penalty on an errant supplier is important for the long term health
of the fertilizer industry.

Recommendations and Conclusions

Plantation agriculture is a long-term investment. It was the most important industry in Malaysia and it's main
crop now, the oil palm, will continue to be important due to requirements for a cheap source of edible oil by
the increasing world population and the new large investments in downstream industries. In the cultivation of
oil palm, fertilizer is probably the single most important material input to sustain high yields and profitability.
Thus there is good reason for fertilizer suppliers to know that they are here to stay. They should recognize
the needs of the plantations and work towards meeting their requirements to ensure the best results for both.

The fertilizer industry here cannot remain static. The industry here is quite efficient and highly competitive.
For the long term, fertilizer principals and companies should remain innovative since users are constantly
expecting new improved products and services from the industry. They should be encouraged to introduce
new products and to carry out research on plantation crops to prove their value and cost effectiveness. They
must be cautious against over-claiming the merits of their products before adequate proof is obtained.

For the time being, straight fertilizers will continue to be the dominant choice by plantations. Mixtures used to
be favoured over straight fertilizers due to fewer application rounds required and assurance of a more
balanced input of nutrients. However, due to the high variation in the composition of nutrients, which often
fails to meet SIRIM’s standards, the use of mixtures has somewhat been reduced.

Fertilizer suppliers should look into ways of mitigating the problem of high variation in composition of
nutrients in mixtures with alternative products. This can also lead to new and innovative methods of
application being introduced and offered to the plantation industry in this country.

To meet the above objectives and enhance their role as fertilizer suppliers, the following matters can be
looked into:

(i) Hold regular dialogues with major plantation companies where members could take note of new
developments in the plantation and fertilizer industry that can affect fertilizer usage. This source of
information is vital for both consumers and suppliers to work towards optimizing fertilizer usage and
 efficiency. This can be done using the network established via the Fertilizer Industry Association of
Malaysia (FIAM) which is a registered body comprising major fertilizer importers and manufacturers in
this country and where membership is voluntary.

(ii) Use the developments in Information Technology and communications to establish a common
database on fertilizer requirements and availability and other relevant information for the plantation
industry and country and to improve information to and from the estates, transporters and suppliers.

(iii) Initiative by suppliers to have their own quality control (QC) to minimize the need for fertilizer analysis
by consumers. This would enhance consumers’ confidence on the product. Fertilizer supplier
companies and their principals are urged to develop and evolve a system to maintain the quality of
fertilizer delivered to users. Users are expecting that quality should start from the producers and
suppliers. This, eventually, will reduce the needs to perform the tedious and labourious process of
sampling and analysis by the users.

(iv) Take or recommend corrective action on errant members found to work against the good principles of
being a responsible supplier and for over-claiming of product specifications and performances.

Smart partnerships can thus develop if both suppliers and consumers come to understand and work towards
the needs of each other. This will be particularly so when one acknowledges that resources must be
optimized as today’s cost of palm oil production has risen substantially with the increase in wages and
fertilizer prices and with increased competition from other competing oils and production from other
countries. The needs and practices in the plantation industry will probably change in future to meet the
increasing challenges. The fertilizer industry should try to be aware of these as success will go to those who
best meet the changes.

Acknowledgements

Mr. Chew Poh Soon, Head of Applied Agricultural Research Sdn. Bhd. was instrumental behind the
preparation of this paper. His valuable ideas and comments are gratefully acknowledged. The authors also
wish to thank their respective organizations for permission to publish this paper.

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