Palm Oil
<p ><b>Palm oil</b> is an edible <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetable_fats_and_oils" title="Vegetable fats and oils" >plant oil</a> and is derived from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesocarp" title="Mesocarp" class="mw-redirect" >mesocarp</a> of the fruit of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_palm" title="Oil palm" >oil palm</a> (<i>Elaeis guineensis</i>).<sup id="cite_ref-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-0" >[1]</a></sup> It is not to be confused with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_kernel_oil" title="Palm kernel oil" >palm kernel oil</a> derived from the kernel of the same fruit,<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-1" >[2]</a></sup> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_oil" title="Coconut oil" >coconut oil</a> derived from the kernel of the coconut palm (<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocos_nucifera" title="Cocos nucifera" class="mw-redirect" >Cocos nucifera</a></i>). The differences are in color (raw palm kernel oil lacks <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carotenoids" title="Carotenoids" class="mw-redirect" >carotenoids</a> and is not red), and in saturated fat content: Palm mesocarp oil is 41% saturated, while Palm Kernel oil and Coconut oil are 81% and 86% saturated respectively <sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-2" >[3]</a></sup></p>
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Naturally reddish in color because of a high <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta-carotene" title="Beta-carotene" class="mw-redirect" >beta-carotene</a> content, palm oil, along with coconut oil, is one of the few highly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturated_fats" title="Saturated fats" class="mw-redirect" >saturated</a>vegetable fats. It is semi-solid at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_temperature" title="Room temperature" >room temperatures</a> and contains several saturated and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unsaturated_fat" title="Unsaturated fat" >unsaturated fats</a> in the forms of glyceryl<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauric_acid" title="Lauric acid" >laurate</a> (0.1%, saturated), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myristic_acid" title="Myristic acid" >myristate</a> (1%, saturated), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmitic_acid" title="Palmitic acid" >palmitate</a>(44%, saturated), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stearic_acid" title="Stearic acid" >stearate</a> (5%, saturated), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleic_acid" title="Oleic acid" >oleate</a> (39%,<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monounsaturated" title="Monounsaturated" class="mw-redirect" >monounsaturated</a>), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linoleic_acid" title="Linoleic acid" >linoleate</a> (10%, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyunsaturated" title="Polyunsaturated" class="mw-redirect" >polyunsaturated</a>), and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha-Linolenic_acid" title="Alpha-Linolenic acid" >alpha-linolenate</a> (0.3%, polyunsaturated).<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-3" >[4</a></sup>
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Like all <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetable_oil" title="Vegetable oil" class="mw-redirect" >vegetable oils</a>, palm oil does not contain <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cholesterol" title="Cholesterol" >cholesterol</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-4" >[5]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-5" >[6]</a></sup> although saturated fat intake increases both <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LDL" title="LDL" class="mw-redirect" >LDL</a><sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-6" >[7]</a></sup> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-density_lipoprotein" title="High-density lipoprotein" >HDL</a><sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-7" >[8]</a></sup> cholesterol.</p>
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Palm oil is a common cooking ingredient in the tropical belt of<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa" title="Africa" >Africa</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeast_Asia" title="Southeast Asia" >Southeast Asia</a> and parts of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil" title="Brazil" >Brazil</a>. Its increasing use in the commercial food industry in other parts of the world is buoyed by its lower cost<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-8" >[9]</a></sup> and the high oxidative stability (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturated_fat" title="Saturated fat" >saturation</a>) of the refined product when used for frying.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-9" >[10]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-10" >[11]</a></sup></p>
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The use of palm oil in food products attracts the concern of environmental activist groups; the high oil yield of the trees have led, in parts of Indonesia, to removal of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forest" title="Forest" >forestry</a> in order to make space for oil-palm <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monoculture" title="Monoculture" >monoculture</a>. This has resulted in acreage losses of the natural habitat of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orangutan" title="Orangutan" >orangutan</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil#cite_note-11" >[12]</a></sup></p>