Significance of oil palm Oil palm cultivation assumes

significance for augmenting the indigenous availability of

edible oil as it is the highest oil yielding perennial crop. In
comparative terms, yield of palm oil is 5 times the yield of
edible oil obtainable from traditional oilseeds.

At present, it is the largest source of vegetable oil in the world.

Five countries mainly Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand
and Combodia account for over 90% of the world’s total
production of oil production
India fulfills more than two-thirds of edible oil demand through imports, and palm oil
accounts for more than 60% of the total imports.

It palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia,

Among soft oils, the import of sunflower oil declined to

1,46,970 tonne in March due to high prices as against 

Similarly, the shipment of soybean declined marginally to

Along with coconut oil, palm oil is one of the few highly
saturated vegetable fats and is semisolid at room
temperature.[13] Palm oil is a common cooking ingredient in
the tropical belt of Africa, Southeast Asia and parts of
Brazil. Its use in the commercial food industry in other
parts of the world is widespread because of its lower cost
[14]
 and the high oxidative stability (saturation) of the refined
product when used for frying.[15]
 In food
The highly saturated nature of palm oil renders it solid at room temperature in temperate regions, making it
a cheap substitute for butter or hydrogenated vegetable oils in uses where solid fat is desirable,

 Non-food consumer products

Palm oil is pervasively used in personal care and cleaning products, and it provides the foaming agent in nearly
every soap, shampoo, or detergent. Around 70% of personal care products including soap, shampoo, makeup,
and lotion, contain ingredients derived from palm oil

Biomass and biofuels

The organic waste matter that is produced when processing oil palm, including oil palm shells and oil palm fruit bunches, can
also be used to produce energy. This waste material can be converted into pellets that can be used as a biofuel. amounts of
palm oil exports to Europe are converted to biodiesel (as of early 2018: Indonesia: 40%, Malaysia 30%).In 2014, almost half
of all the palm oil in Europe was burnt as car and truck fuel.As of 2018, one-half of Europe's palm oil imports were used for
biodiesel
Recently, the Prime Minister announced a National Mission on Edible Oil-Oil Palm (NMEO-
OP), with an investment of over Rs 11,000 crore over a five-year period. NMEO-OP is a new 
Centrally Sponsored Scheme. It is proposed to have an additional 6.5 lakh hectares for palm oil by
2025-26.
The special emphasis of the scheme will be Andaman and Nicobar Islands due to the conducive weather conditions
in the regions

It is expected to incentivise production of palm oil to reduce dependence on imports and help farmers cash in on
the huge market.