Malaysia domestic consumption of palm oil is 5 times less than its export in 2018

The global consumption of palm oil is observed to increase almost linearly over the past 10 years up to 2020.

Unlike what is commonly assumed, people use palm oil primarily for biodiesel consumption, not cosmetic or food.

Based on the infographic, the domestic consumption of palm oil in Malaysia for the year 2018/2019 currently stood at 3.5 million metric tons. The country’s domestic consumption accounts for just a fraction of its total palm oil production, and most of the palm oil it produces is exported.

Malaysia is the world’s second-largest exporter of palm oil in terms of volume, after Indonesia, contributing about 32% of the world’s production.

In 2018, the country exported around 15.4 million metric tons of palm oil, almost five times more than the domestic consumption which stood at 3,573,000 metric tonnes. As a comparison, Indonesia’s domestic consumption of palm oil was about a third of the palm oil it produced that year.

As a global leader in the palm oil production, Malaysia has long been promoting palm oil as a safe and nutritious food commodity.