There are cost mitigation benefits too, we use palm residues from replanting as organic fertilisers thus reducing costs and the environmental impact from using chemical fertilisers, biogas produced from palm biomass powers our palm oil mills and is also used to generate electricity for our plantations not served by the national grid. Our successes continue to give us the confidence and added impetus to further sharpen our focus on innovation to reap greater benefits from our waste-to-wealth strategy and in the process, continue to widen and diversify our revenue base. The FGV Group has subsidiaries placed along our circular economy value chain that can leverage R&D discoveries for commercialisation as well to introduce the associated products into the market and nurture them to maturity. Optimising our natural resources In 2020 we launched the Integrated Farming Blueprint with an overarching intent of revenue diversification. Integrated Farming has since been developed into a new business line with vast growth potential. I am happy to report that encouraging progress continues to be made building on the platform created in 2020. This initiative is also an integral part of FGV’s embrace of the circular economy and currently encompasses: Cash Crops and Large Scale Paddy Farming, Animal Feed & Nutrition as well as Integrated Dairy Farming and the end-to-end digital marketplace, GOGOPASAR. Sustainability is infused across all Integrated Farming businesses. The agriculture-based businesses optimise the use of natural resources at our disposal and leverage our extensive body of agriculture expertise. Cavendish bananas are cultivated as an intercropping cash crop with coconut in our Paloh Estate in Johor maximising land use and revenue generation capacity. Cash crops, namely pineapple, watermelon and banana are planted to optimise use of 15,000 hectares of land allocated for oil palm replanting each year. This activity also has beneficial effects in preserving soil texture and fertility as well as improving pest and disease control. Use of the land also extends to fresh fish farming. There is a social side too, as we involve farmers from the B40 group, providing them with a source of income, as part of our efforts to promote the right to an adequate standard of living. The value cycle created by businesses under the ambit of Integrated Farming ensures future business sustainability for FGV and expands our impact across the agribusiness value chain. The businesses embrace renewables to reap the revenue generation potential afforded by the circular economy, for instance, Animal Feed & Nutrition initiative turns waste to value through repurposing palm kernel expeller into high quality animal feed which, aside from being sold commercially, also benefits our Dairy Farming business by providing a ready source of healthy nutrition to nurture optimum health and promote the milk production of our dairy livestock. E-Commerce is now ubiquitous, driven by pandemic restrictions and a growing population of tech-savvy consumers with a distinct preference for online shopping. GOGOPASAR, launched in November 2020, is a logical and strategic complement to the FGV Group as it adds the important digital element to our supply chain. This is an integral move in our digital transformation efforts which keeps us relevant with the times and enhances the sustainability of our supply chain especially in light of the mobility and physical interaction challenges during the pandemic. 7 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020/2021 CLIMATE ACTION & ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDgzMzc=