BY KHIRTINI K . KUMARAN

It has been proven to be one of the healthiest edible oils in the world . Palm oil contains a balance of one of the healthiest nutritious fats and does not contain trans fatty acids ( TFA ) or hydrogenated fats . Besides having a healthy fat content , palm oil contains Vitamin A , tocopherol , and tocotrienol antioxidants .

However , other edible oil producers , worried about the competition palm oil posed , have backed smear campaigns ranging from health to environmental concerns . However , Malaysia has successfully addressed these lies , and palm oil continues to gain popularity .

In December 2022 , the United States Department of Agriculture ( USDA ) estimated global palm oil production to be about 77.22 million tonnes for the 2022 / 2023 period , an increase of 3.39 million tonnes compared to the previous year .

Of this amount , Indonesia contributed 45.5 million tonnes of palm oil , or around 59 per cent of the global rate . Apart from Indonesia , several other countries also produce palm oil in large quantities .

Below , we list the countries considered the world ’ s largest palm oil producers in 2023 .

1 . INDONESIA

Indonesia produces 59 per cent of the world ’ s total palm oil production or 45.5 million tonnws annually . According to Statistics Indonesia ( BPS ), Indonesia exported 25.01 million tonnes of CPO and its derivative products in 2022 . The main

export destinations for Indonesian palm oil products were the European Union , India , Pakistan , and Africa .

2 . MALAYSIA

Malaysia is the second largest palm oil producer in the world . It produces about 19.3 million tonnes yearly or around 25 per cent of the global production . The leading importers of Malaysian palm oil are the European Union , Pakistan , China , and the United States .

3 . THAILAND

The next largest palm oil-producing country in the world is Thailand . This country is responsible for around 3.45 million tonnes of palm oil , or around 4.4 per cent of global production . To increase palm oil productivity , Thailand is developing an oil palm plantation industry programme over the next 10 years . Most palm oil producers in Thailand are smallscale farmers .

4 . COLOMBIA

Colombia is a tropical country in South America , considered the fourth largest palm oil producer in the world . Since 2018 , Colombia has joined the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries ( CPOPC ). This country produces 1.8 million tonnes of palm oil annually , or around 2.3 per cent of the global rate .

5 . NIGERIA

The next largest palm oil-producing country in the world is Nigeria , which produces around 1.4 million tonnes of palm oil products yearly . Nigeria was the third-largest palm oil-producing country in the world in 1996-2003 , beating Thailand . However , in the following years , Thailand succeeded in increasing its palm oil production .

6 . GUATEMALA

Guatemala is capable of producing 920,000 tonnes of palm oil per year . The

palm oil industry in Guatemala has been developing rapidly .

7 . PAPUA NEW GUINEA

This neighbouring country of Indonesia is responsible for producing 800,000 of palm oil every year . Even though the oil palm plantation in Papua New Guinea is comparatively small , roughly 130,000 hectares to Indonesia ’ s 16.8 million , this country is set to become one of the largest palm oil producers in the world .

8 . IVORY COAST

Ivory Coast or Cote d ’ Ivoire in French , is a country located in West Africa . Apart from being one of the largest chocolateproducing countries in the world , Ivory Coast is also one of the largest palm oil producers . This country can produce up to 600,000 tonnes of palm oil every year . Ivory Coast and Indonesia jointly opposed the anti-palm oil campaign in Europe in 2013 .

9 . HONDURAS

Honduras is capable of producing 595,000 tonnes of palm oil per year . This country received aid for palm oil seeds from Indonesia and Malaysia through CPOPC after being hit by a hurricane in 2020 .

10 . BRAZIL

This country occupies the top position as the largest palm oil producer in Latin America , with a total production of 585,000 tonnes per year . Several international companies depend on palm oil exports from Brazil , including Danone , Nestle , Unilever , PepsiCo , and Cargill .

11 . ECUADOR

Located northwest of the American continent , Ecuador produces over 480,000 tonnes of palm oil annually . About 85 per cent of its palm oil comes from the Costa region . – @ AGROBiz