The palm oil industry, meanwhile, is thriving. Oil milled from palm fruit is something of a miracle product that has become indispensable to billions of consumers around the world, spawning $60bn industry that continues to grow. Palm oil is found in everything from chocolate to bread, cereal and shampoo.
How much oil is extracted from palm kernels?
The oil palm produces bunches containing many fruits with the fleshy mesocarp enclosing a kernel that is covered by a very hard shell. The FAO considers palm oil (coming from the pulp) and palm kernels to be primary products. The oil extraction rate from a bunch varies from 17 to 27% for palm oil, and from 4 to 10% for palm kernels.
Do subsidized agrochemicals improve oil palm production?
In accordance with the finding of the study, we therefore, recommend that a subsidized cost of agrochemicals as well as reduction in its transport cost would encourage farmers to demand for more agrochemical inputs thereby improving oil palm production in the study area.
How many oil palm-producing countries are there in 2009?
Map showing the extent of oil palm cultivation in the 43 oil palm-producing countries in 2009. The original map is taken from Koh & Wilcove (2008) and updated by the authors with 2009 values from FAOSTAT (2011). Land is a key parameter in Global Environmental Change.