Buy South Africa Palm Oil Directly From Exporters & Suppliers - Best of 2024 Market Prices

The global demand for palm oil will grow by approximately 5.3% between 2020 and 2025. The palm oil global market is valued at $54,700 million. The production of South Africa palm oil aims to meet both international and domestic demand. Palm oil is used in making biofuel, candles, cosmetics and in edible products such as ice cream and margarine.

A palm oil tree belongs to the species Elaeis guineensis (African palm oil) and classified under the family Arecaceae. Another species classified under the family Arecaceae include Elaeis oleifera (American palm oil).

Palm oil trees grow to a height of approximately 20 meters. They have short branches characterized by small flowers which eventually develop to oval fruits about 4cm in length.

The fruits are black in colour and have a red base. Each fruit has a single oily seed referred to as a kernel. The outer flesh of the fruit is steamed and then pressed, which results in crude palm oil. Crushing the stone or the kernel produces palm kernel oil.

Because of the beta-carotene content, crude palm oil is reddish in colour in its unprocessed state and is colourless after being refined. Palm kernel oil is brownish or yellow when unprocessed but turns to light yellow or whitish after processing.

Palm oil is native to West and Central Africa. Its cultivation dates back to more than 5,000 years ago. European merchants and other traders enabled the distribution of palm oil during and after the 1870s.

South Africa palm oil controls approximately 0.3% of market shares in terms of global exports. It is subsequently ranked 18th among other palm oil-exporting countries. The total export value of this market share is approximately $28.45 million.

The concentration of export markets for palm oil is 88.24% which means that a few countries dominate this market. Some of the countries that dominate palm oil production in Africa include Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Together they account for more than 65% of production. 

South Africa contributes approximately 4% of total palm oil production in Africa. Some of the top export destinations for South Africa palm oil include Kenya, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Lesotho among other countries.

The three main varieties of palm oil grown in South Africa include the tenera palms, pisifera palms, and the dura palms. The tenera palms contain kernels with a thin shell while the kernels in the pisifera palms have no shells at all. On the other hand, the kernels of dura palms have distinctively thick shells.

Palm oil harvesting takes place all year round. Oil palm trees thrive in areas where it is hot throughout the year. The optimum temperatures for the growth of palm oil trees range between 25°C and 28°C. The hot temperatures enable oil palm trees to produce many fruit clusters.

An oil palm tree also requires deep and well-drained soils. The soil should also be rich in necessary minerals. The rainfall distribution per year for optimum palm oil growth ranges between 2500mm and 4000mm.

A few loose fruits lying around an oil palm tree’s weeded area signifies that the bunch is ready for harvesting. The harvesting process begins by cutting a frond below the bunch. The bunch stalk is then cut and falls to the ground for collection.

After they are collected, they are transported to a processing plant. They are then sterilized, threshed and the pulp is pressed for oil. The oil is later stored under controlled temperatures of 32°C-40°C.

After processing, the oil is packed in 20 litres plastic containers for export. Palm oil has a market shelf life of between 6-12 months.

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