Indonesia has now moved to produce biodiesel for the motor vehicle segment and 40% of the raw material used for this is from palm oil, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia, Dewi Gustina Tobing told the Annual General Meeting of the Palm Oil Industry Association (POIA) in Colombo on Thursday.
She said that road tests are being conducted in Indonesia and they have high expectations in this regard. “This also highlights the multi- benefits of palm oil.”
Palm oil is also used to produce medicines, confectionery and in other sectors as well.
“Recent research states that the size of the global market for vegetable oils will increase from 199.1 million Metric Tons (MT) in 2020 to 258.4 million MT by 2026 in line with the growing global population and widespread use of vegetable oils in various industries.”
Today, palm oil is not only one of the most popular vegetable oils people consume but it also has become a part of sustainable development in Indonesia and in the world.
The production of palm oil contributes a significant 3.5% and 3.8% to the GDP of Indonesia and Malaysia, helping in reducing poverty, halting deforestation, and strengthening the economy largely because of its presence in rural areas and the large number of smallholders.
In 2021, of the 16.5 million workers employed in oil palm plantations in Indonesia, 9.7 million were direct workers. Financial returns for farmers from oil palm are ten times higher than other crops such as rice, and the returns to labour were around 20 times higher. Hence, this can be proven that palm oil cultivation means a higher income and a higher expenditure on non-food items.
Expansion of palm plantation areas led to a 2.7% faster poverty reduction and 4% faster consumption growth. Indonesia’s National Team for the Acceleration of Poverty Reduction in 2019 revealed that since 2000, around 1.3 million of the rural population and around 10 million of Indonesia’s population have successfully been lifted from the poverty line due to the positive impact of the growth of the palm oil industry. “However, currently there is a ban on new oil palm plantations in Sri Lanka and due to POIA representation a Plantation Reform Committee was set up,” President of POIA, Rohan Fernando said.
“At a meeting held on April, 21, 2023, under the Chairmanship of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, it was confirmed that the Expert Committee report was positive and the President has instructed to permit the replanting of oil palm.”
He also said that Sri Lanka is the only country to ban oil palm plantations.
