FROM quickening the pace of mechanisation to meeting global sustainability standards, Sime Darby Plantation Bhd (SDP) is spearheading reforms in the age-old palm oil industry. Using robotics and other artificial intelligence technologies, SDP is gradually transforming the narrative in the palm oil space; from dangerous, dirty and difficult to a modernised industry that is keeping up with the times. The following are excerpts of an interview with chief executive officer Mohamad Helmy Othman Basha:

StarBizWeek: What is your view on the European Union’s (EU) deforestation-free policy and increasing scrutiny for transparency in its supply chain for palm oil-related imports? How will this impact the country in the long run?