The BRATs find out how palm oil is produced during a plantation visit.

AS we set out to find out more about the palm oil industry in Raub, Pahang, we found the perfect guide in Vincent Chang, 43.

Though Chang’s oil palm plantation is relatively new and only 100 acres in size, his family’s transport company has been servicing plantations in the Raub area for decades. This guy knows everything there is to know about palm oil.

Armed with our cameras and notepads, we took the roughly two-hour drive from Kuala Lumpur to Chang’s plantation in Cheroh, which is about 15 minutes from Raub town.

There, Chang introduced us to his workers, and explained to us the process of producing palm oil.

Step 1

After the land is cleared, a backhoe is used to dig holes where the palm oil seedlings will be planted. The holes are dug along a 28 x 28 feet grid.

Step 2

The workers water the plants and apply fertiliser regularly for two years.

Step 3

After two years, the trees start bearing fruit. A fruit bunch is ready to be harvested when it has turned red and weighs roughly 15kg. The workers cut the fruit bunches down, leaving them by the side of the road to be collected by transport trucks.

Step 4

The transport company brings the fruit bunches to a weighing station, where the plantation owner will be paid based on the weight of the harvest.

Step 5

The weighed harvest is transported to the palm oil mill where it will be processed to produce crude palm oil.