The industry has been particularly successful in Southeast Asia, where large-scale oil palm plantations have been established in countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia. These two countries are the largest producers of palm oil, accounting for around 84% of global production.
Indonesia is the world's biggest palm oil producer.
Malaysia is the world's second largest producer of palm oil.
Asia is by far the largest and fastest-growing consumer of palm oil, responsible for two thirds of global consumption. The three largest consuming nations are Indonesia, India and China which between them account for 45 per cent of global demand.
The largest users of palm oil are India (9.4 million tonnes) and Indonesia (6 million tonnes) – countries in which palm oil is traditionally used for cooking. The EU is the third-largest consumer of palm oil.
Imports of commodity group 1511 "Palm oil and its fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified" accounted for 0.037% of total import flow to Australia (in 2022, total imports to Australia amounted to $ 309 billion).
Now, Indonesia and Malaysia make up over 85% of global supply but there are 42 other countries that also produce palm oil.
As per Index Mundi, in 2022, Indonesia and Malaysia were the leading exporters of palm oil, while India, China, the EU, and Pakistan remained the leading importers. As you will find out, most companies in our list also have either Malaysian or Indonesian origins.
The reduction in palm oil imports by India, the world's biggest importer of vegetable oils, could weigh on Malaysian palm oil prices .
Indonesia is the largest producer of palm oil, followed by Malaysia and Thailand, with several other African and South American countries also producing significant amounts.
Indonesia Again Clamps Down on Palm Oil Exports to Control Domestic Prices. Indonesia this week suspended the majority of its previously issued palm oil export permits in order to bolster domestic supplies and rein in rising cooking oil prices.
Around 90% of the world's oil palm trees are grown on a few islands in Malaysia and Indonesia – islands with the most biodiverse tropical forests found on Earth.
Exporters and Importers
Palm Oil are the world's 87th most traded product. In 2021, the top exporters of Palm Oil were Indonesia ($27.3B), Malaysia ($15B), Netherlands ($1.18B), Guatemala ($715M), and Papua New Guinea ($706M).
Coconut oil and palm oil are not the same. The main difference between them is in the raw materials they're produced from. Coconut oil is made from the fruit of the coconut palms, whereas palm oil is made from the fruit of the oil palm tree.
The palm oil in Nutella® is carefully treated during processing, making it perfectly safe to ingest. The palm oil we use in Nutella® is 100% RSPO certified sustainable palm oil and can be traced back to the mills, guaranteeing that it does not come from plantations subject to deforestation.
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought various difficulties in logistics, and government mandates on using palm oil in alternative fuel blends have meant more demand. There have also been supply shortfalls, aggravated by droughts in Latin America, and labour shortages and floods in Malaysia.
One palm tree produces 40 kilograms of oil every year. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) palm oil is important for global food security and economic development.
Labelling in Australia
Palm oil is most commonly labelled generically as 'vegetable oil' which can be any kind of oil like canola or soybean.
The human use of oil palms is believed to date back as far as 5,000 years. In the late 1800s, archaeologists discovered a substance in a tomb at Abydos that they concluded was originally palm oil which dated back to 3,000 BC. It is thought that Arab traders had brought the oil to Egypt.