KUALA LUMPUR: Kulim (Malaysia) Bhd (KMB) has consolidated all of its plantation business under its subsidiary Johor Plantations Bhd (JPB).
The reorganisation is a part of KMB's ongoing five-year business transformation to be a progressive, efficient, profitable, and respectable agribusiness company in the region.
It also establishes KMB as the agribusiness group of its parent company Johor Corporation (JCorp).
Under the restructuring, KMB's agrofood segment, which includes agro farming and livestock operations, is placed under Farmbyte Sdn Bhd (FarmByte) and managed by chief executive officer Syed Aiman Syed Jaafar.
With the reorganisation, stakeholders and customers can expect the same high level of service from JPB and FarmByte that they have come to expect from KMB.
Further, the move is a result of a business transformation at KMB which involves JPB managing KMB's landbank of more than 60,000 ha, 23 estates, five mills, and trading and services activities in Malaysia, including its renewable energy initiatives comprising a biomethane plant and five biogas plants.
The renaming of the subsidiary's name to JPB is in line with its vision to be widely recognised as an integrated plantation company that produces high-quality, sustainable, and traceable speciality oils and fats.
The new name gives the company a sense of origin since its estates, mills and operations are almost entirely located in the state of Johor.
This includes the close business relationship the company has with Johor smallholders.
Further, JPB has appointed Mohd Faris Adli Shukery as its managing director.
He joined KMB in October 2020 as managing director and was tasked to spearhead its reorganisation and transformation agenda.
Mohd Faris will also continue with KMB as a non-independent non-executive director.
Tan Sri Dr Ismail Bakar, who was appointed as the chairman of KMB in May 2022, will lead the JPB board of directors.
The 10-person board of directors comprises four non-independent directors and six independent directors.
The four non-independent directors are Tan Sri Dr Ismail Bakar, Mohd Faris Adli Shukery, Datuk Sr Hisham Jafrey and Shamsul Anuar Abdul Majid.
The six independent directors are Abdullah Abu Samah, Fawzi Ahmad, Mohd Fazillah Kamaruddin, Ong Li Lee, Norita Ja'afar, and Vinie Chong Pui Ling.
The board of directors brings together various backgrounds and experts in fields such as sustainability practitioner, regulatory and compliance, financial management, commercial, and strategic planning.