Difficulties in approaching independent smallholders and land title issues are the two biggest challenges faced by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), as one of the regulatory bodies to get the remaining oil palm plantations certified under the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO).

MPOB director-general Ahmad Parveez Ghulam Kadir said there are 259,000 smallholders in the local sector, and out of this number, around 40 percent of their estates have been certified while the remaining 60 percent are not...