Mong Reththty Group, a Cambodian grower and exporter of palm oil, announced that 2011 exports to international markets increased 13 per cent.

Mong Reththy, a lawmaker from the Cambodian People’s Party and general director for the Mong Reththty Group, said  that the company’s 2011 palm oil exports totalled about 17,000 tonnes and brought in US$17 million, while 2010 saw exports of 15,000 tonnes totalling $16 million.

The company has exported palm oil to Europe, India and Vietnam. He said that one tonne of palm oil currently sells for about $1,000. Khan Samban, director of the Department of Agro-Industry Crops at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, said that the areas that oil palm trees can be grown are the Preah Sihanouk and Koh Kong provinces, but Koh Kong is yet to be cultivated. He said that the trees need a very specific environment in order to grow.