Imports In 2022, South Africa imported $618M in Palm Oil, becoming the 21st largest importer of Palm Oil in the world. At the same year, Palm Oil was the 26th most imported product in South Africa. South Africa imports Palm Oil primarily from: Indonesia ($483M), Malaysia ($132M), Singapore ($971k), Italy ($462k), and Sweden ($295k).
Where is palm oil grown in Africa?
Oil palm is cultivated in about 40% of African countries located in the tropical belt of the continent from Liberia to Tanzania and extending southwest to Angola (Descals et al., 2021 ). In 2018, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Cameroon, and the Democratic Republic of Congo were the top five palm oil producers in Africa (FAOSTAT, 2021 ).
How much oil does oil palm produce a year?
Oil palm crops globally produce an annual 81 million tonnes (Mt) of oil from about 19 million hectares (Mha). In contrast, the second and third largest vegetable oil crops, soybean and rapeseed, yield a combined 84 Mt oil but occupy over 163 Mha of increasingly scarce arable land. The oil palm crop system faces many challenges in the 2020s.
Where does oil palm come from?
Oil palm originates from equatorial Africa where it has been cultivated for millennia, but it is now widely grown in Southeast Asia. Between 2008 and 2017, oil palm expanded globally at an estimated rate of 0.7 Mha per year 2, and palm oil is the leading and cheapest edible oil in much of Asia and Africa.