Trace metals which can give rise to poor storage stability in the refined oil, must also be reduced to acceptable levels. In most instances, crude palm oil in Malaysia is refined through a physical/steam refining process. However, chemical/alkali refining of crude palm oil is also carried out by small number of refineries.
What is the classification of palm oil refining industry in Malaysia?
Based on Malaysia Standard Industrial Classification 2000 (MSIC) by the Department of Statistics Malaysia, palm oil refining industry is grouped under Division 15 in manufacture of food products and beverages. This is associated with the value added and quality of processed palm oil (PPO) after going through the refining process.
What is the process of refining palm oil?
The process of refining palm oil involves the removal of undesirable impurities, including moisture, oxidative material, metal impurities, and water soluble impurities (glycerol, phenols, sugars). This is done in order to increase the shelf life and quality of Refined Vegetable Oil.
Does palm oil refining industry have a high concentration level?
This result is consistent to that of the condition of the palm oil refining industry as the market power is held by only a handful of large firms. The result of HKI α = 1.5 showed that the concentration level in the industry have increased slightly although it still remains in the category of high concentrated industry.
Are Malaysia's palm oil refineries facing intense competition?
The empirical results of this study are evident to verify Palm Oil Refiners Association of Malaysia’s (PORAM) claims that our domestic palm oil refineries are facing intense competition and losing their market share in the global market (Ahmad, 2012).
Why did Malaysian palm oil refining industry bounce back in 2010?
With the uncertainty in the global market, the commodity prices, especially palm oil, continued to drop in 2008 causing the sales of domestic palm oil refiners to decline sharply before recovering progressively in second half of 2009. The concentration indices for Malaysian palm oil refining industry had thus bounced back in 2010 as a result.