It is an important and versatile vegetable oil that is used as a raw material for both food and non-food industries.
Palm oil is extracted from two types of oil palm fruit: Elaeis guineensis, which is common in African regions, and Elaeis oleifera, whichis found in South America. Historical accounts suggest that palm oil was a part of the diet of indigenous populations. At present, it has become the second most traded oil crop in the world, after soy, with Malaysia and Indonesia as its main producers.
Palm oil is not to be confused with palm kernel oil. Both are obtained from the fruit, but the latter is derived from the seeds of the oil palm. Palm kernel oil has a higher amount of saturated fat, which makes it ideal for cooking as well.
Palm oil — also known as red palm oil — contains high amounts of saturated fat, vitamins, and antioxidants.
Palm oil and palm kernel oil based ingredients are found in approximately 50% of products on supermarket shelves, including food and non food items. Palm oil in many countries is used as a simple frying oil, but many other markets make use of both palm and palm kernel oil:
Consumer retail food and snack manufacturers
Palm kernel and palm oil uses are widely varied because they can be processed and blended to produce a vast range of products with different characteristics. The below ingredient names are found on the packaging of 50% of the products stocked on most supermarket shelves, being either palm oil or palm kernel oil based.
20 kg
Some of the uses of red palm oil include:
Palm oil is 100% fat, half of which is saturated. It also contains vitamin E and red palm oil contains antioxidants called carotenoids, which your body can convert into vitamin A.
Appearance | Clear, pale yellow fluid above 120°F |
Flavor | Bland |
Odor | Bland |
Mettler Dropping Point | 100°-110°F |
Iodine Value | 50-55 |
Moisture % | 0.1 (max) |