Palm oil
hidePalm oil is an edible plant oil derived from the fruit and kernels (seeds) of the oil palm Elaeis guineensis. Palm oil is naturally reddish because it contains a high amount of beta-carotene (though boiling it destroys the carotenoids and renders the oil colourless). Palm oil is one of the few vegetable oils relatively high in saturated fats (like coconut oil) and thus semi-solid at room temperature.
The oil is widely used as a cooking oil, as an ingredient in margarine, and is a component of many processed foods. It is also an important component of many soaps, washing powders and personal care products, is used to treat wounds, and also controversially as a feedstock for biofuel.
Palm oil was previously the second-most widely produced edible oil, after soybean oil,[citation needed]. However, in the 2004-2005 marketing year, 33.5 million metric tonnes were produced worldwide, compared to 32.6 million metric tonnes of soybean oil.
For more information about Palm oil, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with palm oil
Predators key to sustainable farming
Aug 21, 2009 |
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Barn owls have emerged as the unlikely heroes in the fight against climate change, saving Malaysian farmers more than money, UQ PhD Student Chong Leong Puan has found.
Study: Climate adds fuel to Asian wildfire emissions
Apr 30, 2009 |
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In the last decade, Asian farmers have cleared tens of thousands of square miles of forests to accommodate the world's growing demand for palm oil, an increasingly popular food ingredient. Ancient peatlands ...
Biofuels could hasten climate change
Apr 14, 2009 |
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A new study finds that it will take more than 75 years for the carbon emissions saved through the use of biofuels to compensate for the carbon lost when biofuel plantations are established on forestlands. If the original ...
New orangutan population found in Indonesia
Apr 12, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Conservationists have discovered a new population of orangutans in a remote, mountainous corner of Indonesia - perhaps as many as 2,000 - giving a rare boost to one of the world's most critically ...
Malaysia urged to force big oil to produce biofuel
Mar 12, 2009 |
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Malaysia must force major oil firms to produce biofuel if the once-vaunted biodiesel industry is to have any future, industry experts told a conference Thursday.
The pluses and (mostly) minuses of biofuels
Feb 23, 2009 |
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Speakers at last week’s AAAS meeting presented abundant evidence that tropical rainforest destruction has accelerated in recent years, at least in part because of the worldwide push to produce more biofuels.
Orangutans struggle to survive as palm oil booms
Oct 22, 2009 |
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Cinta, a baby orangutan found lost and alone in a vast Borneo palm oil plantation, now clings to a tree at a sanctuary for the great apes, staring intently at dozens of tourists.
Singapore-made biofuel to run cars in Europe, North America
Mar 06, 2009 |
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Diesel made from palm oil, vegetable oil and animal fat in Singapore may soon be powering cars in Europe and North America, Finland's Neste Oil said Friday.
Biofuels and biodiversity don't mix, ecologists warn
Jul 09, 2008 |
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Rising demand for palm oil will decimate biodiversity unless producers and politicians can work together to preserve as much remaining natural forest as possible, ecologists have warned. A new study of the potential ecological ...
