Palm oil is part of our world in many more ways than we imagine. It is present at home, work, in restaurants, and even cars rely on the countless uses of palm oil. As technology develops in our fast-paced worlds, and the need for healthy diets, new uses of palm oil develop too.

Ca'da Mosto, a Portuguese explorer from the 15 th Century once tasted palm oil in Africa and wrote: “It smells of violets, tastes like olives and has a colour that blends foods together like saffron, but even all this can't sufficiently describe its special qualities”.

Palm oil is rich in carotene from which it derives its bright, tropical, red colour. In fact, the carotene content of palm oil is 16 times higher than levels found in a carrot with the same mass and weight. This makes palm oil one of the main and richest sources of carotene and as such is important in combating vitamin A deficiency common in many developing countries.

Tocopherols and tocotrienol (vitamin E fractions) are other important nutrients found in palm oil. Carotene, tocopherols and tocotrienol act as antioxidant agents and can reduce cell damage caused by toxic substances and environmental pollution, which are both known to speed up the development of certain diseases. In addition, palm oil is an excellent source of tocotrienols, which are powerful anticarcengic substances and help against thrombosis.

In Asia , palm oil is also referred to as ‘gold oil' for its perfect balance of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids which do not adversely affect cholesterol levels.

The palm tree originally comes from Africa and even though in the past Africans did not fully know about the benefits of palm oil, it has been used as a source of food for the last 5,000 years. Today, as in the past, crude and unrefined palm oil is consumed across Africa .

A healthy, versatile crop

Due to its physical characteristics, palm oil can be used and prepared in a number of processes without the need to hydrogenise it. This has advantages as hydrogenation can produce undesirable trans fatty acids which may lead to diseases, including cardiovascular problems and diabetes.

The composition of palm oil, together with its natural consistency, appearance, pleasant smell and its resistant nature makes it an ideal ingredient in the development and production of a variety of edible oils, in particular margarines and fats. Palm oil is also ideal when making the following products: dry cake mix used for baking biscuits, cakes and sponge cakes, soaps, sauces, fat substitutes used when making condensed milk, powdered milk, non lacteous cream used in coffee and ice-cream.

Palm oil is also considered one of the best oils for frying. This is because it can resist high temperatures and does not produce unpleasant smells. Palm oil as such is used in the home, in restaurants and during the mass production of fried potatoes, French fries, puffy hor'dourves, pies, ring-shaped pastries and doughnuts.

Also, palm kernel meal, a byproduct of palm oil, is used in the production of concentrated foods and as a supplement in animal food.

In comparison palm kernel oil, even though it comes from the same fruit, is very different from the oil obtained from the rest of the fruit. In fact, palm kernel oil resembles coco oil and is semi-solid or solid at room temperature. When it is eaten it produces a soft sensation in the mouth, similar to cacao. This makes palm kernel oil popular among chocolate lovers. Due to its neutral taste and long life, palm kernel oil can also be used as a substitute for cacao and fats found in milk.

Palm kernel oil is used in cream made from sugar, condensed milk and doughnut fillings. It is also found in biscuits and cakes giving them a softer texture and sweeter taste which lingers in the mouth. Palm kernel oil is also used to make special kinds of margarines and is found in ingredients used when baking cakes, croissants and bread, giving these products added volume, a soft texture and making them last longer. Palm kernel oil is also favoured when making sweets, cream for coffees and peanut butter.

Other uses of palm oil

African palm oils have non-edible uses which are of great economic value and can be used as a substitute for petroleum.

Palm and kernel oils are used in the production of oleochemical products such as fatty acids, fatty esters, fatty alcohols, which all contain glycerol and fatty nitrogen. Recently, palm and kernel oils have been increasingly used as biodiesel fuel.

In 1900, Rudolf Diesel used vegetable oil as fuel for his car, from which the motor engine subsequently took its name. Years later, palm oil was successfully developed as a biofuel for cars. Using palm oil as a biofuel is more environmentally friendly and its more advantageous than other combustible fuels such as petrodiesel and standard petrol.

Colombia has pledged to produce biodiesel using palm oil mixed with diesel. This will eventually play an important role in providing energy fuels which can power thousands of cars and machines with motor engines across Colombia . Using palm oil as a biodiesel brings benefits and is environmentally friendly. It also generates employment and contributes to the demand for renewable energy sources.

Non-edible uses of palm oil include:

• Soaps and detergents

• Candles

• Cosmetics

• Lubricating greases for machinery used in the production of edible foods

• Grease for bread molds and bread making equipment

• Grease used to protect tanks, pipelines and similar instruments which remain uncovered and in the open air

• Drilling mud for the petroleum industry

• Epoxidated palm oil used to plastify and sterilize products in the plastics industry, in particular during the production of PVC

• Glue

• Printing inks

• Biodiesel

• Metallic soaps for the manufacture of lubricating grease and metallic dryers

• Steel cold rolling proceses

• Tinplate rolling

• Acids to lubricate fibers in the textile industry

In addition to oils extracted from the oil palm fruit, other parts of the tree can be used in industry. For example, leaf fibers and empty fruit bunches are used to produce chipboard and plywood. After plantations are cleared out, the trunks of old palms can be used to make furniture.