News & Views

Dr Celestine Ikuenobe shares insights from his lifetime of expertise in palm oil, discussing how breeding programs are future-proofing this versatile and productive crop, promoting higher yields, drought tolerance, and resistance to disease.

Oil palm is indigenous to Ghana and West Africa with wild Elaeis guineensis palms growing in groves scattered throughout the tropical belt of the region. Traditionally, the palm oil used in local households was extracted from this wild variety.

We recently visited our customers Binasawit Makmur (BSM), a subsidiary of Sampoerna Agro, in Sumatra. Meeting our customers, seeing their practices, understanding their needs, and getting their feedback enables PBS International to continuously improve our products.

At the National Association of Plant Breeding (NAPB) 2024 meeting Hannah Senior caught up with Professor Ksenija Gasic, to find out how PBS International’s pollination control tents are helping Clemson University to develop tomorrow’s disease-resistant peach rootstocks.

Collaborative research with our customers has been part and parcel of our R&D since the early days. Over decades, we’ve researched dozens of crop species in locations worldwide, from mustard in India to sugar beet in South East England.

PBS have just returned from an exhilarating trip to Indonesia and Malaysia, where they were kindly welcomed by our customers and distributors within the Oil Palm sector.