By Muin Abdul Majid

DUBAI, March 11 (NNN-BERNAMA) -- Malaysian Agrifood Corporation Berhad (MAFC), an integrated food supply chain management company, has shipped 1,800 tonnes of tomatoes worth 4.8 million Ringgit (one USD = about 3.4 Ringgit) to the Middle East since April last year.

It has also exported 630 tonnes of pineapples valued at 1.2 million Ringgit since September last year, says its vice-president for international sales, Mohamad Hafizuddin Abdullah.

Malaysian tomatoes and pineapples as well as papayas, are now available in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, he adds.

"We're also looking at Oman and Kuwait. At the same time, we want to expand our distribution channels in those countries where we're already present," he told Bernama Wednesday on the sidelines of the World of Perishables Exhibition here.

The tomatoes are grown mainly in the Cameron Highlands in the Malaysian East Coast state of Pahang and marketed in the Middle East region under the "Lushious" brand while the MAFC also ships other highlands vegetables to the region.

Mohamad Hafizuddin said MAFC would like to introduce cavendish bananas from Malaysia to the Middle East market. "They are grown in Kota Tinggi (in southern Johor state) and also sourced from India through a contract farming arrangement," he explained.

According to him, MAFC had in fact shipped the bananas on a trial basis to Dubai, Qatar and Iran in January this year. MAFC's presence in the region stemmed from its participation in the Gulfood 2009 exhibition in Dubai.

Malaysia exported 19.8 million Ringgit worth of fruits and vegetables to the UAE in 2009, according to figures compiled by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade).

On the outlook for Malaysian papaya exports, Mohamad Hafizuddin said the consumption of the fruit was still low in the Middle East compared to other tropical fruits like bananas and pineapples. "But we'll continue to increase awareness of our 'Paiola' papayas in this market," he said.

He added that the Paiola had a lot going for it, having been picked as a finalist for the Fruit Logistica Innovation Award 2009 Berlin.

The MAFC is also exporting fruits and vegetables to Europe, Singapore, Indonesia, China and Hong Kong.

Matrade's senior trade commissioner in Dubai, Dzulkifli Mahmud, said fresh produce from Malaysia was well received by consumers in the Middle East. He said the products could be found in good supermarket chains in the UAE and elsewhere.

Dzulkifli acknowledged competition from other South East Asian producers, but believed that sustained promotional efforts on the part of Malaysian companies, was the key to making further inroads in the Middle East.

He also urged Malaysian producers to come up with high quality products that would appeal to buyers and consumers here. -- NNN-BERNAMA