Palm Oil Production

By Morgan Hyland

Still mostly used in the manufacturing of food products◦ Found in 1 in 10 food items in the UK

Now being used as an ingredient in bio-diesel also transportation

Also used as fuel to be burnt in power stations to produce energy

Indonesia and Malaysia are the biggest market for palm oil energy production

How is the energy source being used?

Palm Oil Production

Bunch Thresher

Fruit Sterilizer

Wet and Dry Method of extracting oil….

continued…

Largest cause of rainforest clearance Responsible for destruction of 10 million

hectares of rainforest 6.5 million hectares of palm oil plantations

have been created Responsible for the destruction of species

◦ responsible for at least half of the observed reduction in orangutan between 1992 and 2003

Causes an increase in green house gas emissions

Chief cause of forest fires in Indonesia

Environmental Impacts

Benefitted large companies at the expense of small communities◦ Lose their land and access to rainforest resources

and economic profits◦ Palm oil production often more associated with

corporate greed rather than sustainable development

Other disadvantages

Reduces green house gases that destroy the ozone layer

Renewable resource- most commonly produced vegetable oil in the world

It has the lowest production cost of all the major oils

Advantages

Where produced?

In its use in creating biofuels, it would reduce the need for crude oil

It reduces the amount of green house gases that are emitted into the atmosphere

Renewable resource Costs less than all other oils

What would it replace?

http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefings/palm_oil_biofuel_position.pdf

http://www.biomass-asia-workshop.jp/biomassws/04workshop/presentation_files/17_Choo.pdf

http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/005/Y4355E/y4355e04.htm