SEO Version
significance of palmoil
The use of oil palm has increased significantly in recent years, largely due to its efficiency as an oil-bearing crop.
According to the OECD-FAO 2010-2019 Agricultural Outlook, global consumption of vegetable oil was expected
to increase by 30% between 2010 and 2019. Growth would come mainly from developing countries, in view of
the population growth and rise in average income.
While the expansion of oil palm plantations across Southeast Asia has received considerable public attention,
there is a need for a balanced assessment by considering the economic advantages of palm oil to the Indonesian
economy, local farmers and global food production.
most efficient oil-bearing crop
The table below shows that in comparison with other major oil crops, oil palm produces the highest tonnage of oil
per hectare per year with a minimum use of land, making it the most efficient oil-bearing crop in the world
iv
. This
efficiency means that oil palm is able to meet global demand with less land, and thereby conserve more areas
of forestry. The table below shows that oil palm accounts for almost 36.6% of production from just 5.5% of total
harvested area.
comparison major oil crops
OIL CROP
OIL PRODUCTION
(MIL TONNES)
% OF TOTAL OIL
PRODUCTION
AVERAGE OIL
YIELD (T/HA/
YEAR)
HARVESTED
AREA (MIL HA)
% OF TOTAL
HARVESTED
AREA
Soyabean
40.18
28.7
0.39
102.73
44.1
Sunflower
12.43
8.9
0.51
24.25
10.4
Rapeseed
23.79
17.0
0.76
31.40
13.5
Oil Palm
51.10*
36.6
3.99
12.82
5.5
Total**
139.79
233.14
*
Combined tonnage of palm oil and palm kernel oil
**
Only for the seven major oil crops, i.e. cottonseed, groundnut, coconut and the four listed above.
Source: Oil World (2011)
high nutritional value
The human body requires fat and vitamins to stay healthy. An adequate
amount of fat is necessary in the human diet for proper digestion and
nutrient absorption. Vitamins A and E are essential for healthy growth
and development of the human body. While vitamin A stimulates
the immune system and controls the growth and functions of body
tissues, vitamin E is a powerful anti-oxidant, capable of reducing the
harmful free radicals in the body, protecting humans from certain
chronic diseases, and delaying the body's ageing process.
Palm oil provides both fat and carotenoid, a rich source of vitamin
A and E. No other vegetable oil has more vitamin E than palm oil.
Palm oil is cholesterol and trans-fat free. It is composed mainly
of triglycerides of fatty acid with a balanced composition between
saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. The latter comprises 40%
monounsaturated and 10% polyunsaturated fat.
poverty reduction
Currently, Indonesia has some 1.5 million farmers growing oil
palms, mostly under the nucleus-outgrowers scheme. Malaysia has
approximately 500,000 small growers, with most of them under
centrally managed schemes. The oil palm industry created millions
of farm and non-farm jobs, and brought agriculture exports to high
levels. District authorities and smallholder cooperatives participated
actively to realise these economic benefits. Expert studies showed
that oil palm has been instrumental in reducing, and in some cases,
eliminating rural poverty in these developing countries.
Sustainability Report 2 012
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