Malaysia: Firm cultivates orchids using biotechnology

Capitalising on the growing appreciation and demand for orchids, Orchid Life Sdn Bhd founder and chief executive officer Abdul Razak Mohd Isa, together with his chief operating officer Mustadza Muhamad, looked at the possibility of growing orchids on a larger scale through tissue culturing. “We chose to go into business with orchids as there is global demand,” said Abdul Razak.

From cell

In 2006, the former manager of a multinational oil and gas company partnered with architect Mustadza to set up the venture.

A year into the business, they secured funding from the Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) to commercialise Universiti Putra Malaysia(UPM) Agribiotech’s research and development. Orchid Life received an RM2.5mil allocation from the Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp) under the BioNexus Seed Development Fund to grow their business.

Abdul Razak said the first phase of their business saw them establishing a 1,000sq ft lab at UPM, buying equipment for tissue culture activities and funding the research and development programme.

He also transformed one acre of land he inherited from his father in Sungai Buloh, Selangor into an orchid nursery, where he grew orchids.

Using the lab, the company grow orchid using tissue and suspension-culture techniques. Gel, in the form of purified agar and an in-house formula, is used in tissue culture technique to grow orchid plants.

In the suspension culture, a large quantity of orchid cells are kept in glass containers that are continuously stirred and aerated to promote growth of new orchids.

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