1) The document discusses issues and challenges with developing a new essential oil industry in Malaysia, including the country's steep learning curve in this area and barriers such as regulatory approval. 2) Essential oils are volatile compounds extracted from various plant parts and used in foods, fragrances, and other products, but the market is dominated by synthetic materials. 3) Specific challenges for Malaysia include limited biodiversity of essential oil crops, few experts in natural product chemistry, and the complexity of building a sustainable essential oils industry.

1. “Issues and Challenges to Developing a New Essential Oil Industry in Malaysia” Mohd. Murray Hunter University Malaysia Perlis Presentation to the 2nd International Biotechnology and Biodiversity Conference

2. The Biotechnology Pyramid Red Biotechnology Genomics White Biotechnology Mutagenesis Fermentation Reframed Disciplines Micro-organisms Green Biotechnology Thermodynamic Processes Micro-propagation

4. Malaysia’s Biotech Policy Business cant wait that long About 15 Years

5. We Have a steep learning Curve

6. The Issues

7. What are essential oils?

8. Essential Oil A volatile oil obtained from a wide variety of plant, scrub, and tree species and from various parts of the plant anatomy, such as the roots, rhizomes, wood bark, leaves, stems, fruit, flowers and seeds. Usually extracted by hydro or steam distillation, expression or effleurage - Hunter 1996

9. Concretes and Absolutes Volatiles and waxes extracted from plant material with hydrocarbon solvents (usually benzene and hexane) through washing and removal of the volatile solvent with distillation. A waxy aromatic substance remaining is called a concrete. The concrete is washed with alcohol to remove the volatile materials and ethanol removed through vacuum distillation to leave an absolute.

10. The Natural Aromatic Product Family

11. The Size of the Essential Oil Market

12. Ratio of Natural to Synthetic Materials Used in the Flavour & Fragrance Industry Essential Oils & Natural Aromatic Materials 13% 87% Synthetic Raw Materials

13. The market size for Natural Raw Material for the Flavor and Fragrance Market is USD650 M Fragrance & Flavour Production USD 20 Billion Essential Oil Production USD 650 million

16. Some Generic Global Issues

17. Global Warming, The Food and Economic Crisis

18. Market Turbulence

20. Wild Collection and Threatened Plant Species

22. Bargaining Power of Producers Bargaining Power of Producers

24. The Regulatory Environment

25. Derelict vanilla plantation, Seychelles.EU/IFRA policy will repeat similar scenes.

26. Old clove distillation works, Zanzibar before eugenol was classified as R36-43.Subsequently became derelict!

28. Top Twenty Essential Oils Produced in the World

29. The Rural Crisis

30. Average age of farmers in Malaysia

31. Education? Infrastructure? Market Orientation? Technology? Opportunities?

32. Templating of Natural Aromatic Molecules

33. Templating of Natural Aromatic Molecules

34. Research

36. No or limited economic study or little consideration to scale up potentialNB: to bioprocess engineer has this as a fundamental consideration (difference between scientist and engineer) Typical Research Model

37. Desirable Research Model

39. RM 3,600,000

40. Lower capital Investment Higher ROI RM 200,000

41. Sustainability

45. Specific Issues & Challenges To Malaysia

46. Biodiversity

47. Low Crop Diversity in Malaysia

48. Very few world class professors Limited number of students interested in natural product chemistry & agro-entrepreneurship

49. The complexity of the essential oil industry

53. Value

63. CONCLUSION

65. Research Should be Focused Here

66. Mostly Imitation Here The Areas of Growth are Here Regulatory Approval is a Paramount Barrier

68. Some Success factors

69. Nova Science Publishers New York Thank You