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INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS
Figure 2: World Production of Vegetable Oil (MPOB,2002)
5.1 Varieties
The varieties of palm kernel is classified according to the palm fruit type. These are ;
i. Wild type called dura, characterised by relatively thin layer of flesh covering the
seed,, which consist of a hard thick shell within which the kernel lies.
ii. Pisifera, a fleshy fruit with thick layer of flesh and small kernel.
iii. Tenera, a thick flesh fruit with shell and kernel of intermediate size
5.2 CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF PALM KERNELS OIL.
Palm kernel oil is made up of chemical compound of one molecule of glycerol bound to
three molecules of Fatty Acid.
CH2 – OH + R1-COOH CH2 – COOR1
CH – OH + R2-COOH CH – COOR2 + 3H2O
CH2 – OH + R3-COOH CH2 – COOR3
Glycerol Fatty Acid Triglyceride Water
The fatty acids could be of the same type or they could be different.
Palm kernels are rich in lipids (53%), contain 35% of carbohydrates, 10% of proteins and
2% of inorganic compounds. The lipids content is close to 54% with the palm kernels in
Nigeria.
5.3 FATTY ACID CONTENT OF PALM KERNEL OIL
The types and the proportions of fatty acids present in the triglycerides of an oil has a
major influence on the physical, chemical and the nutritional values of oil. Fatty acid
composition is therefore its most important chemical characteristics. The fatty acids
themselves are different depending on their chain length and degree of saturation. The
short chain fatty acids are of lower melting point and are more soluble in water. Whereas,
the longer chain fatty acids have higher melting points. The melting point is also
COPY RIGHT © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 62
JANUARY 2011
VOL 2, NO 9