The geography of palm oil

Palm oil is a fruit that is grown in mostly humid and warm countries, like Colombia, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria and sri lanka. However the reason these countries are all doing is not just the climate but the actual economic situation. they are all developing countries and therefore use it as a source of steady income.

it is on the other hand causing havoc in their biodiversity. Here is a piece quoted from elsewhere: "The palm oil industry is guilty of the most heinous ecological atrocities imaginable, including the systematic genocide of orang-utans"- AMAZON CUSTOMER OF RED PALM OIL.

The fruit itself starts off as a seed


then it turns into a small palm tree with palm leaves and then gets bigger. below is a picture of a palm tree

Uses of palm oil

Food

Palm oil is used in chocolate, spreads, candies, sauces, cooking spray condensed milk among other things. Cadburys, Nutella, Reeses, Skippy, Knorr, Dolmio, Dominos all use palm oil in their food.

Other uses

Cosmetics, soaps, candles and detergent are more uses of palm oil. Palmoiliv- palm-olive:palm.

Palmolive is a very big consumer of Palm oil. they make handsoaps and shampooes.

Fuel

Palm oil is used to make a sustainable biodiesel which is proving to be very popular. Colombia is currently producing a lot of it.

Pros

Red Palm Oil contains high amounts of

Carotenoids

Sterols

Vitamin E

However only natural and cold pressed unrefined red palm oil contains these compounds in high amounts. It just so happens that natural and cold pressed unrefined red palm oil can be pricey.

Alzheimers

Arterial thrombosis

Atherosclerosis

These are all diseases that red palm oil can prevent.  However the sole problem is that palm oil is generally found in many forms that do not contain the required compounds that fight cancer and other harmful diseases.

Red palm oil is generally hydrogenated for the use in making food on a commercial level. it increases the shelf life but makes it toxic for humans. But we are still using it. It causes toxicity of the kidney, lung, liver, and heart.

Conclusion

In my view I think that palm oil has some great benefits, but the palm oil that is consumed vastly does not have the same amount of benefits as unhydrogenated, natural and cold pressed unrefined red palm oil.