On April 17, the Malaysian Ministry of Agriculture said that the Malaysian Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the General Administration of Customs of China signed the "Protocol on Phytosanitary Requirements for the Export of Fresh Coconuts from Malaysia to China". Malaysia will export fresh coconuts to China, giving priority to its high-quality aromatic varieties, especially pandan, which is famous for its unique pandan fragrance and natural sweetness. Previously, Malaysia only exported coconuts to China based on general phytosanitary certificates without any specific agreements.

With the implementation of the agreement, Malaysia will pay more attention to the requirements for registered farms to comply with good agricultural practices (myGAP) and comply with the integrated pest management (IPM) system. These measures will ensure that only high-quality and safe coconuts that meet international standards can be exported. It is estimated that there are about 60,000 coconut farmers in Malaysia, of which small farmers contribute more than 80% of the country's total coconut production. In 2023, Malaysia's coconut production reached 624,000 tons, of which 6,000 tons of young coconuts were exported abroad. At the same time, Malaysia imports more than 278,000 tons of old coconuts to meet the specific needs of the coconut processing industry, mainly producing coconut milk, coconut shreds, coconut flakes and other related products.