INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY IN OIL PALM

Fresh Fruit Bunch & Fruitlets

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is an important cash crop native to tropical region of West Africa. You can secure your future with investment in oil palm plantation and processing which has high capacity to generate long term revenue. Every part of oil palm is money. Moreover, 1 hectare of oil palm plantation is able to produce up to ten times than some major oilseed crops. These economic trees have successfully and extensively cultivated been in Nigeria, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Columbia, Ecuador and Papua New Guinea. However, Malaysia is the most advanced in oil palm technology. Oil palm has many derivatives; the two important value added products are palm oil and palm kernel oil, these products are useful ingredients used in Food, Cosmetics, as lubricant and in energy industries. Palm oil is used in a wide variety of food products such as cooking oil, shortenings and margarine. Palm kernel oil is a raw material used in the production of non-food products which include soaps, detergents, toiletries, cosmetics and candles. Palm oil is particularly rich in vitamin A (in compound called carotenoids) and vitamin E (in compounds such as tocopherols and tocotrienols.) Palm oil has the richest known content of natural tocotrienols. Studies have shown that tocotrienol helps lower bad cholesterol levels and protects the brain against diseases. Equally, red palm oil, or mildly refined palm oil, has seventeen times more carotenoids than carrots. Vitamin A stimulates the immune system and controls the growth and functions of body tissues. Export market opportunity for oil palm is increasing with highest consumption recorded in China, India, Indonesia, USA and the European Union. As population increases, the demand for oil palm products in local and international markets will continue to soar, hence the need to start investing in oil palm plantation and processing.

Palm oil is one of the best oil to consume and is as good as olive oil from health point of view, FAO recommends that oil should take the tune of 30% of calories intake each day – Yusof Basiron, CEO, Malaysian Palm Oil Council.

Other derivatives from oil palm include fuel substances, palm wine, woven basket, broom, PKC, stearin and host of others. Overtime, several varieties of oil palm which produces high quantity of palm oil have been develop. Sprouted oil palm nuts are nursed into seedlings. The seedling can stay in the nursery for 12 – 18 months before it is planted in the field (using 9m x 9m traingular spacing to give 143 stands/hectare) and it produces fruits after 2.5 years. As the year increases, yield also increases while the height of the tree also increases. Oil palm tree can grow up to 20 – 30 feet in height. The economic life of an oil palm tree is 25–30 years. With good agronomic practices and management, a mature tree bears 10-15 Fresh Fruit Bunch (FFB) in a year (that is, 10 – 25 kg; 1000 – 3000 Fruitlets). Yield and revenue therefore depend on number of hectares cultivated. Further processing into palm oil and other oil palm derivatives will increase accruable revenue. 5- 8 tons of palm oil can be produced from one hectare per annum. Major equipment needed to set up 10 metric ton/day oil mill include, Bunch Stripper/Sanitizer; Steam Boiler; Sterilizers; Digester/Auto Screw Press; Cake Breaker; Fibre Separator/Cyclone; Nut Polishing Unit; Nut Recovering Unit; Oil Clarifier; Conveyor; Control Panel and Electric Motors.

Photo credit: Dike; Oil Mill

Broadly, various value chain opportunities in oil palm include; Research, Tissue culture, Sprouted seedlings/nursed seedling supply, Production, Processing, Equipment fabrication, Equipment sales and service, Oil palm products marketing and Support services.