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| FAQs |
1. What is Palm Oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil obtained from the fleshy portion or the mesocarp of the fruit of oil palm trees(Elaeis guineensis). Palm oil in crude form is semi-solid and naturally reddish colour due to high amount of beta-carotene. 2. What is palm kernal oil Palm kernel oil is an edible vegetable oil obtained from the kernel of the fruit of oil palm trees(Elaeis guineensis). Palm kernel oil in crude form is naturally yellowish in colour. The kernels oil is extracted by pressing the kernels in mechanical screw presses. The chemical composition of palm kernel oil is different from palm oil but similar to coconut oil. It is a lauric type oil. 3. What is refining of palm or palm kernel oil?The aim of refining is to convert the crude oil to quality edible oil by removing undesirable components or impurities to the desired levels in the most efficient manner. The impurities or undesirable components are such as free fatty acids (FFA), oxidation products, phospholipids, odiferous components, colouring matter, moisture, insoluble materials and trace metals. These components can either be present naturally in the oil or picked up from wear and tear of the extraction machinery or can form as result of quality deterioration during storage, transportation and handling. There are two routes are taken to process crude oil into refined oil, i.e., chemical and physical refining. The main difference of the two processes is the ways of removing the FFA. Most of the refineries in Malaysia use the physical refining. During the conventional refining process, the natural carotenes (pro-Vitamin A) and a substantial portion of vitamin E found in palm oil were destroyed. However, with the new refining technology, most of these natural carotenes and vitamin E may be retained. 4. What is the difference between chemical and physical refining?The methods differ basically in the way the fatty acids are removed from the oil. a. Chemical Refining:
b. Physical Refining:
5. What is fractionation?Malaysian refiners are able to offer a wide range of palm products to cater for a multitude of usage worldwide. This is accomplished through a simple process of fractionation. Fractionation of the oil is the process to segregate or separate into various glyceride fractions or the higher melting point triglycerides from the lower melting point triglycerides under controlled cooling conditions. Palm and palm kernel oil is consists of a mixture of triglycerides with different melting characteristics. To add value to these products, the oil is fractionated by crystallization to achieve a separation of the two components. The higher point of triglycerides or fraction is known as stearin (solid fraction) and the lower point triglycerides or fraction is known as olein (liquid). There are basically three methods of fractionation used commercially, i.e. (i) dry fractionation (ii) detergent fractionation and (iii) solvent fractionation. 6. What is hydrogenation?Hydrogenation of fats is the addition of hydrogen to the double bonds in the fatty acid chains. It results in the hardening of oils and forms a semi-solid product. Two major objectives are accomplished through hydrogenation of fats, i.e. (i) to convert a liquid oil to semisolid form that is more suitable for specific food applications such as margarines and shortenings, and (ii) to improve the oxidative stability of the oil. A major disadvantage of the hydrogenation process is the formation of trans-fats. Research has shown that trans-fats have detrimental effect of trans-fat on cholesterol. 7. What is interesterification? |
