UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA

ASSOCIATION OF RED-TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES WITH NUTRIENT DEFICIENCY

VIJIANDRAN A/L JUVA RAJAH

FP 2007 14

ASSOCIATION OF RED-TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES WITH NUTRIENT DEFICIENCY

By

VIJIANDRAN A/L JUVA RAJAH

Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia,

in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science

August 2007

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Page 1 The Red-tip Of Pineapple Leaves 9 2 Stages Of Red-tip Development on Pineapple Leaves 9 3 Nitrogen deficient plant at 145 DAP 34 4 Plant exhibiting severe nitrogen deficiency at 270 DAP 35 5 Plants exhibiting phosphorus deficiency at the initial stages at

150 DAP 36

6 Severe phosphorus deficiency exhibited at 270 DAP 37 7 A close up view of an older leaf deficient in phosphorus 37 8 Early symptoms of potassium deficiency, noted after 2nd

fertilisation 38

9 Severe deficiency of potassium at 270 DAP 39

10 General view of a plant deficient in potassium at 270 DAP 39

11 Plants deficient in calcium, after 2nd fertilisation 40

12 Plant deficient in calcium, after 4th fertilisation 41

13 A close look at magnesium deficient plants at 145 DAP 42

14 Plants deficient in sulphur after 2nd fertilisation 43

15 Close look at the red tip formed on sulphur deficient leaves at 150 DAP

43

16 Plants treated without the input of sulphur at 270 DAP with

some red-tip formations red-arrows) after the completion of the 4th fertilisation round.

44

17 Total number of leaves of plants for various treatments

compared at each period of sampling 50

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18 General Plant Height of various treatments compared at each period of sampling 52

19 Total number of leaves for T1 and T2 at various stages of

sampling 63

20 Mean leaf dry weight of T1 and T2 at various stages of sampling

64

21 Stem circumference of T1 and T2 at various stages of sampling 66

22 Mean Stem Dry Weight of T1 and T2 at various stages of

sampling 67

23 Red-tip percentage in the leaves of T1 and T2 at various stages

of sampling 69

24 Nitrogen uptake in D-leaf at different stages of plant growth 72

25 Phosphorus uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 72

26 Potassium uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 73

27 Calcium uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 73

28 Magnesium uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 74

29 Sulphur uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 74

30 Zinc uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 75

31 Copper uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 75

32 Manganese uptake in D-leaf in different stages of plant growth 76

33 Nitrogen uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 81

34 Phosphorus uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 81

35 Potassium uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 82

36 Calcium uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 82

37 Magnesium uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 83

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38 Sulphur uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 83

39 Zinc uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 84

40 Copper uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 84

41 Manganese uptake in stem at different stages of plant growth 85

42 Sampling areas of Pineapple leaf samples for microscopic work 94

43 Confocal Microscope view of the green area of pineapple leaves

99

44 Confocal Microscope view of the red-tip area of the pineapple

leaf. 99

45 Phloem region of green area magnified at 1000 X using the

Confocal Microscope 100

46 Phloem region of red-tip area magnified by 1000 X using the

Confocal Microscope 101

47 Sieve element cells of the phloem region of the green area under

the TEM at the magnification of 20 000X 103

48 Sieve element cells of the phloem region of the red-tip area

under the TEM at the magnification of 20 000X 103

49 Magnification of 60 000 X of the strange bodies found in the

sieve element cells in the red-tip area of the pineapple leaves. 104

50 Mycoplasma like organisms found in citrus likubin. Globular

structures marked with the yellow arrow 105

51 Mycoplasma like organisms of sweet potato witches’ broom.

Note the numerous bodies located in the sieve elements 105

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DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to :- Both my parents Mr. and Mrs. Juva Rajah-Punithavathy the souls responsible for what I am today My wife Christina Vijiandran who had shared all the wonderful and troubled moments of my life since the very first day we met To the contributors and potential contributors of any kind of knowledge that is beneficial to mankind and is as well in harmony with nature

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Abstract of thesis presented to the Senate of Universiti Putra Malaysia in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science

ASSOCIATION OF RED-TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES WITH NUTRIENT DEFICIENCY

By

VIJIANDRAN A/L JUVA RAJAH

August 2007

Chairman: Associate Professor Ahmad Husni Mohd. Hanif, PhD,

Faculty: Agriculture

The red-tip of pineapple leaves which affected the Gandul variety was sighted in the early

1990’s in Peninsula Plantations, Simpang Renggam, Johore where it has been found that

about 10% or more of its leaves starting from the tip had turned red. It was speculated

that it was due to sulphur deficiency as a result of the change of nitrogen carriers from

ammonium sulphate to urea. This study was carried out with three main objectives: (i) to

investigate whether the red-tip problem is related to nutrient deficiency through Missing

Element Experimental Technique and thus identify the nutrients that are involved, (ii) to

investigate the effect of ammonium sulphate and urea as the nitrogen carriers on the red-

tip of pineapple leaves and also the plant performance in terms of vegetative growth and

fruit yield at field conditions and (iii) to examine and compare the cell structural

iv

differences between the normal (green) and infected (red-tip) part of the pineapple leaf

from cv. Gandul

The Missing Element experiment was carried out in the glasshouse to achieve the first

objective while the second objective was achieved through a field experiment in Simpang

Renggam, Johore. Further to the above experiments, the red-tip area and the green area of

the leaves were also viewed under a Confocal and Transmission Electron Microscope to

look for any differences between them at the cellular level which covered the third

objective of the study.

Visual observations of the plants from the first experiment could not reproduce the red-

tip as found in Simpang Renggam for all treatments including plants treated without the

input of sulphur though there was some occurrence of the red-tip in these plants at 150

days after planting (DAP). The deficiency symptom of other eliminated nutrients was

mostly similar to that reported in literature and there were no similarities seen compared

with the red-tip phenomenon. Vegetative growth variables studied from the destructive

sampling carried out at 180 and 300 days after planting showed significant differences

between treatments only at the later stage of plant growth, the second stage of sampling.

The first experiment indicated that sulphur deficiency was not the primary cause for the

occurrence of the red-tip phenomenon in the pineapple leaves.

Plants grown in the field from both treatments, i.e. plants fertilised with ammonium

sulphate as nitrogen fertiliser (Treatment 1, T1) and plants fertilised with urea as nitrogen

v

fertiliser (Treatment 2, T2) did not show any significant differences between them in

terms of vegetative growth, plant nutrient uptake, soil nutrient concentrations and yield.

There were also no significant differences between T1 and T2 in the red-tip percentage at

all sampling periods except one but further soil and plant nutrient analysis did not show

any significant differences. Besides that, the uptake trend of the macro and micro

nutrients was also not significant for both treatments and the levels had indicated healthy

growth for both treatments. The sulphur and other nutrient concentrations for plant and

soil were well above the critical point for deficiency to occur and the continuous

occurrence of red-tip in plants treated with input of ammonium sulphate gave a doubt

whether sulphur is the main cause of the phenomenon. The insignificant yield between

the two treatments had further increased the doubt. The second experiment had further

strengthened that the deficiency of sulphur is not the cause of the red-tip in the pineapple

leaves.

With the above findings, observations carried out using the Confocal Microscope of both

the green and red-tip area of the pineapple leaves revealed the presence of some

blockages in the phloem cells of the red-tip area which was not found in the green area.

Further magnification of this area using the Transmission Electron Microscope revealed

presence of some globular structures in the sieve element cells of the red-tip area similar

to the infection of Mycoplasma Like Organisms (MLO). The presence of these structures

had most likely blocked the movement of nutrients through sieve element cells thus

causing the disintegration of chlorophyll to anthocyanin causing the red-tip of pineapple

leaves. However further trials are needed to confirm this speculation.

vi

The study had given an understanding that the red-tip phenomenon is not caused by the

deficiency of sulphur or any other plant nutrients but due to the presence of the globular

structures in leave cells which may be MLO.

vii

Abstrak tesis yang dikemukakan kepada Senat Universiti Putra Malaysia sebagai memenuhi keperluan untuk ijazah Master Sains

ASSOCIATION OF RED-TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES WITH NUTRIENT DEFICIENCY

Oleh

VIJIANDRAN A/L JUVA RAJAH

Ogos 2007

Pengerusi : Profesor Madya Ahmad Husni Mohd Hanif, PhD

Fakulti : Pertanian

Fenomena hujung merah daun nanas yang telah menjangkiti varieti Gandul telah ditemui

pada awal 1990an di Peninsula Plantations, Simpang Renggam, Johor dimana 10% atau

lebih daripada daunya telah berubah menjadi merah bermula dari hujungnya. Spekulasi

yang dijangka adalah kekurangan sulfur disebabkan oleh perubahan pembawa nitrogen

dari ammonium sulfat kepada urea. Kajian ini telah dijalankan dengan tiga objektif utama

iaitu (i) untuk mengkaji sama ada masalah hujung merah daun berkaitan dengan

kekurangan nutrien melalui Teknik Eksperimen Pelupusan Nutrien dan seterusnya

mengenalpasti nutrien yang mempengaruhinya, (ii) untuk mengkaji kesan ammonium

sulfat and urea sebagai pembawa nitrogen pada hujung merah daun nanas serta prestasi

tumbuhan dari segi pertumbuhan vegetatif serta hasil dalam keadaan lapangan dan (iii)

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untuk mengkaji serta membandingkan perubahan struktur sel diantara bahagian biasa

(hijau) dan yang dijangkiti (hujung merah) daun nanas cv. Gandul.

Eksperimen untuk Pelupusan Nutrien telah dijalankan di Rumah Kaca, untuk memenuhi

objektif pertama, manakala objektif kedua kajian ini dicapai melalui satu ekperimen di

lapangan di Simpang Renggam, Johor. Tambahan kepada kedua-dua eksperimen tersebut,

bahagian hujung merah serta bahagian hijau daun nanas telah diperhatikan di bawah

Mikroskop ‘Confocal’ dan Transmisi Elektron untuk melihat perbezaan diantara kedua-

dua bahagian tersebut diperingkat selular untuk memenuhi objektif ketiga.

Pemerhatian visual pokok-pokok yang ditanam untuk eksperimen pertama, tidak boleh

menghasilkan hujung merah seperti yang diperhatikan di Simpang Renggam terutamanya

pokok-pokok yang dirawat tanpa input sulfur meskipun terdapat sedikit pembentukan

hujung merah pada pokok-pokok tersebut iaitu 150 hari selepas penanaman. Simptom

kekurangan bagi nutrien lain yang diperhatikan telah menunjukan pemerhatian yang sama

seperti dalam literatur dan tidak mempunyai persamaan dengan fenomena hujung merah.

Parameter-parameter pertumbuhan vegatatif yang dikaji daripada persampelan

pemusnahan yang dijalankan pada 180 dan 300 hari selepas penanaman hanya

menunjukan perbezaan rawatan yang bererti pada peringkat lewat pertumbuhan tanaman,

iaitu pada peringkat persampelan yang kedua. Eksperimen pertama menunjukkan

kekurangan sulfur bukan punca utama yang membawa kepada fenomena hujung merah

didalam daun nanas.

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Pokok-pokok yang ditanam dilapangan daripada kedua-dua rawatan iaitu pokok-pokok

yang dibaja dengan ammonium sulfat sebagai baja nitrogen (Rawatan 1, T1) dan pokok-

pokok yang dibaja dengan urea sebagai baja nitrogen (Rawatan 2, T2) tidak menunjukkan

sebarang perbezaan bererti diantara mereka dari segi pemerhatian pertumbuhan vegetatif,

pengambilan nutrien oleh pokok, kepekatan nutrien di dalam tanah serta hasil

pengeluaran. Tiada sebarang perbezaan bererti diantara rawatan T1 dan T2 dalam peratus

hujung merah yang pada semua tempoh persamplen kecuali satu dimana pemerhatian

lanjutan dengan analisis tanah dan nutrien tanaman yang tidak menunjukkan perbezaan

yang beerti. Selain itu, tren pengambilan nutrient makro dan mikro juga tidak

menunjukkan sebarang perbezaan yang bererti diantara kedua-dua rawatan serta

menunjukkan pertumbuhan pokok yang sihat. Tahap kepekatan sulfur dan nutrien lain

didalam pokok serta tanah telah melebihi tahap kritikal untuk membolehkan masalah

kekurangan nutrien berlaku serta kewujudan hujung merah berterusan pada pokok-pokok

yang diberi input ammonium sulfat telah mewujudkan suatu kesangsian sama ada sulfur

adalah penyebab utama fenomena tersebut. Hasil pengeluaran yang tidak bererti bagi

kedua-dua rawatan tersebut turut menambah kesangsian ini. Eksperimen kedua telah

memperkuatkan pendapat bahawa kekurangan sulfur bukan merupakan punca kejadian

fenomena hujung merah pada daun nanas.

Pemerhatian dengan Mikroskop ‘Confocal’ untuk kedua-dua bahagian hujung hijau dan

merah daun nanas, telah menunjukkan kehadiran sedikit sumbatan di sel-sel floem pada

bahagian hujung merah daun dimana sumbatan sebegini tidak wujud dibahagian hijau

daun. Pembesaran lanjut bahagian ini dengan menggunakan Mikroskop Transmisi

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Elektron pula menunjukkan kehadiran sedikit struktur berbentuk globular di sel-sel

elemen penapis pada bahagian hujung merah yang mempunyai persamaan seperti

jangkitan Organisma Seperti Mikoplasma (MLO). Kewujudan struktur sebegini

diramalkan telah menghalang perjalanan nutrien melalui sel elemen penapis yang

seterusnya membawa kepada perubahan klorofil kepada antosianin yang seterusnya

menyebabkan hujung merah daun nanas. Walaubagaimanapun kajian yang lebih lanjut

diperlukan untuk mengesahkan spekulasi ini.

Kajian ini telah memberi suatu pemahaman bahawa fenomena hujung merah tidak

dipengaruhi oleh kekurangan sulfur atau nutrien-nutrien pokok lain tetapi disebabkan

oleh kewujudan struktur globular didalam sel-sel daun yang berkemungkinan jangkitan

MLO.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all I would like to thank the Almighty for the inner motivation and strength

poured into me throughout the duration of this study. My deepest gratitude also goes to

my beloved parents, Mr and Mrs Juva Rajah and my loving wife Christina for boosting

my confidence and providing me the push to complete this thesis. I also would like to

thank my siblings Navindran and Thaneswary for all the support during the tough times

encountered while completing this thesis. To all my family members, thank you for your

constant support given to me in one way or another especially to cousins George Wong

and Kalyani for the trouble taken to edit this thesis at the initial stages and my nephews

Sudesh and Previnash for recreating the smile in my face when the going gets tough.

My sincere appreciation goes to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ahmad Husni who had given me all the

guidance, advice, help and support needed all through the duration of the study besides

having the confidence in me. The contributions on Assoc. Prof Dr. Aminuddin Husin and

Assoc. Prof . Dr. Mahmud Tengku Muda on their various field of expertise is also deeply

acknowledged. The help rendered by Puan Sarimah, En. Junaidi, Madam Suleka, Mr. Ho

and other staffs of both the Department of Land Management especially Soil Fertility Lab

2 and the Microscopy Unit, Institute of Bioscience is never forgotten. A big thank you to

Dr. Osumanu Haruna Ahmed for all his help, guidance and brotherly advice given to me

all these years I had known him. I would also like to appreciate the management of

Peninsula Plantations Sendirian Berhad especially to Mr. Koh Tsu Koon for allowing us

xii

to carry out our experiment in the estate and also for the supply of planting materials and

media needed for the study. Their kind hospitality given to us during all our visits to the

estate is also deeply appreciated.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my employers’, United Plantations

Berhad for the employment during the needy times of which it had gave me the financial

strength to complete my studies. Last but not least to each and every individual who

helped me in one way or another in completing this study.

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APPROVAL

I certify that an Examination Committee has met on 28 August 2007 to conduct the final examination of Vijiandran a/l Juva Rajah on his Master of Science thesis entitled "Association of Red-tip of Pineapple Leaves with Nutrient Deficiency" in accordance with Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Higher Degree) Act 1980 and Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Higher Degree) Regulations 1981. The Committee recommends that the student be awarded the relevant degree. Members of the Examination Committee are as follows: Mohd Khanif Yusop, PhD Professor Department of Land Management Faculty of Agriculture Universiti Putra Malaysia (Chairman) Samsuri Abdul Wahid, PhD Lecturer Department of Land Management Faculty of Agriculture Universiti Putra Malaysia (Internal Examiner) Ganesan Vadamalai, PhD Lecturer Department of Plant Protection Faculty of Agriculture Universiti Putra Malaysia (Internal Examiner) Mohammad Selamat Madom, PhD Unit Head Planting Material, Seed and Livestock Breed Production Unit Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (External Examiner)

________________________________ HASANAH MOHD GHAZALI, PhD Professor/Deputy Dean School of Graduate Studies Universiti Putra Malaysia

Date:

xiv

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the thesis is based on my original work except for quotations and citations which have been duly acknowledged. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently submitted for any other degree at UPM or other institutions.

_________________________

VIJIANDRAN JUVA RAJAH

Date: 12 December 2007

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

DEDICATION iiABSTRACT iiiABSTRAK viiACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xiAPPROVAL xiiiDECLARATION xivTABLE OF CONTENTS xvLIST OF TABLES xviiiLIST OF FIGURES xix

CHAPTER

I INTRODUCTION 1

II REVIEW OF LITERATURE 3 Background of the Pineapple Industry 3 Pineapple Cultivation in Malaysia 4 The Pineapple Plant 4 The Pineapple Leaves 6 Red-tip of Pineapple Leaves 8 Essential Plant Nutrient Elements and It’s Effect on the Growth

of Pineapples 10 Nitrogen 11 Phosphorus 13 Potassium 14 Calcium 16 Magnesium 17 Sulphur 18 Peat Soils 19 Physical Characteristics of Peat 20 Chemical Characteristics of Peat 22 Fertility of Peat Soils 23 Mycoplasma Like Organisms 26

III INVESTIGATION OF THE RED TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES THROUGH MISSING ELEMENT EXPERMENTAL TECHNIQUE 28

Introduction 28 Objective 28 Materials and Methods 29 Location of Experimental Site and Planting Materials Used 29 Experimental Designs and Treatments 30 Fertilisation Scheme 31 Sampling and Data Recording 32

xvi

Results and Discussion 33 Visible Nutrient Deficiency Symptoms 33 First Destructive Sampling 45 Second Destructive Sampling 46 Vegetative Growth Comparison 48 Conclusion 54

IV COMPARISON ON THE EFFECTS OF AMMONIUM SULPHATE AND UREA ON THE RED TIP OF PINEAPPLE LEAVES IN FIELD CONDITIONS 55

Introduction 55 Objective 55 Materials and Methods 56 Experimental Location 56 Fertilisation 56 Sampling 57 Variables Recorded 58 Plant Samples Preparation 58 Soil Samples Preparation 59 Plant Parts and Ash Analysis 59 Soil Chemical Analysis 61 Statistical Analysis 62 Results and Discussion 62 Total Leaves 62 Leaf Dry Weight 64 Stem Circumference 65 Stem Dry Weight 66 Red-tip Percentage 68 Plant Nutrient Concentrations and Uptake 69 Soil Nutrient Concentrations 86 Yield 90 Conclusion 91

V OBSERVATION OF THE RED-TIP OF PINEAPLLE LEAVES UNDER CONFOCAL AND TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPE 93

Introduction 93 Objective 93 Materials and Methods 94 Sample Preparation 94 Results and Discussion 98 Confocal Microscope Observations 98 Transmission Electron Microscope Observations 101 Conclusion 106

xvii

VI SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 107

BIBLIOGRAPHY 109 BIODATA OF THE AUTHOR 114

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LIST OF TABLES

Table Page 1 Range and average percentage of important elements in organic

soils. 25

2 Nutrient content of peat used as planting medium for the

Missing Element Experiment 29

3 Treatments for Missing Element Experimental Technique 31 4 Effect of treatments on total leaves production, leaf dry weight,

stem dry weight and stem circumference at first destructive sampling

45

5 Effect of treatments on total leaves production, leaf dry weight,

stem dry weight and stem circumference at second destructive sampling

47

6 Fertilisation programme for T1 and T2 57 7 Mean Nutrient Content in D-leaves at various Stages of

Sampling for T1 and T2 71

8 Mean Nutrient Content in Stem at various Stages of Sampling

for T1 and T2 80

9

Nutrient concentrations in soil samples at 0 – 25 cm depth at various stages of sampling for T1 and T2

87

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Pineapples (Ananas comosus), originated from South America (Othman and

Subhadrabanthu, 1995; Barthlomew and Malézieux, 1994), like many other crops in

Malaysia, have been domesticated, improved and developed since pre-historic times,

often with no records of agronomy (Othman and Subhadrabanthu, 1995). Originated from

the Bromiliaceae family, the cultivation of pineapples in Malaysia is rather unique as it is

cultivated largely on peat (Ahmed et al., 2002). In Malaysia, the crop is planted in an area

of 6400 hectares (2003) for both ‘Table’ consumption and canning. Seventy eight percent

of the total area is under pineapple estates while the balance belongs to small holders.

Over the last few years, the production of canned pineapples in Malaysia has decreased.

Malaysia was producing 189,700 tonnes of fresh fruit in 1991 at its peak and dropped to

73,500 tonnes (forecast) in 2003. Most of the pineapples were produced by the estates

which accounted between 77 to 92 percent of total country production from 1990 to

2003. The decrease in the production is mainly due to the reduction of planting areas

especially among the small holders where the area decreased by about 30% over the same

period mentioned above (AGRIQUEST 2006).

Pineapple planted in Malaysia serves two main purposes, ‘Table’ consumption and

canning. The Sarawak pineapple, which originated from the Cayenne variety and Morris

from the Queen variety are commonly planted for ‘Table’ consumption while the Gandul

and Masmerah from the Spanish variety for canning purposes (Selamat and Ramlah,

2

1993). The Gandul, which is largely planted in the Johore area, has been selected for its

good yielding even though there are several shortcomings (Selamat and Abdul ,1996).

Over the years, numerous researches have been carried on the pineapple fruit and the

plant itself with the aim of improving the yield thus increasing the income of farmers and

making the industry profitable. In addition to that, various studies have been also been

carried out to control diseases and pests infecting the plants such as mealy bug wilt

(Dysmicoccus brevipes) the common pineapple pest. Recently, a new problem had arisen

which has affected the gandul variety called red-tip of pineapple leaves.

The red-tip phenomenon was first sighted in Peninsula Plantations and speculations were

that it was caused by nutrient deficiency. It is believed that this phenomenon had caused a

reduction in yields which is an effect of nutrient deficiency which led to this study. This

study was aimed to look into the red-tip of pineapple leaves in the nutrient point if view

with three main objectives, (i) to investigate whether the Red-tip problem is related to

nutrient deficiency through Missing Element Experimental Technique, (ii) to investigate

the effect of both ammonium sulphate and urea as the nitrogen carriers on the red-tip of

pineapple leaves and also plant performance in terms of vegetative growth and fruit yield

under field conditions and (iii) To examine and compare the cell structural differences

between the normal (green) and infected (red-tip) part of the pineapple leaf from cv.

Gandul.

3

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Background of The Pineapple Industry

Pineapple is one of the 45 genera and 2000 species available in the Bromeliaceae family

(Nakasone and Paull, 1998). Originated from South America and has been well

developed and now its world trade is dominated by the canned fruit. The world pineapple

production fluctuated between 38 000 to 52 000 million standard cases (4,516 pineapples

per standard case) from 1990 to 2002. Thailand and Philippines continued to lead the

world in total canned pineapple export, accounting for 44.6% and 14.5% respectively

(AGRIQUEST, 2006).

Pineapple has been the oldest agricultural export sector in Malaysia but unfortunately it

never really took off and had always been a subsidiary crop for the country. The export of

this product by Malaysia however decreased significantly from 6% in 1990 (41 300

standard cases) to 2.6% in 2003 which accounts for 38 170 standard cases

(AGRIQUEST, 2006). The area under pineapple crop in Malaysia is decreasing steadily

in recent years as the growers shift to more profitable and less intensive crops. But the

decrease is all among the smallholdings because the nature of the industry makes the

estate area more resistant to change, as most estate owners are also owners of the canning

factories. Another reason for the drop in the area is clearly seen in the price of pineapple.