Although the provenance of oil palm production used to be Africa, the production of oil palm, as a primary crop has shifted to South East Asia, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia.
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.
When did palm oil become a commercial crop?
In terms of large-scale commercial production, however, oil palm is a relatively recent crop that only emerged into global prominence later in the twentieth century, with an almost linear rise from 1990 to the early 2000s, followed by a plateau after 2007 (Malaysian Palm Oil Production by Year 2020 ).
Why is palm oil rising?
The rise of palm oil follows the rapid increase in demand for vegetable oils more broadly. The breakdown of global vegetable oil production by crop is shown in the stacked area chart. Global production increased ten-fold since the 1960s – from 17 to 170 million tonnes in 2014.
How has palm oil changed over the past 50 years?
Palm oil production has increased rapidly over the past 50 years. In 1970, the world was producing only 2 million tonnes. This is now 35 times higher: in 2018 the world produced 71 million tonnes. The change in global production is shown in the chart. 3 The rise of palm oil follows the rapid increase in demand for vegetable oils more broadly.
How many jobs does oil palm produce a year?
It is responsible for nearly 3 million downstream jobs in importing countries. Growing at a compound annual growth rate of 76% between 2008 and 2019—and accelerating to 129% from 2014 to 2019—VSS-compliant oil palm fruit now represents 17% of total global production.