Europe Export Indonesian Palm Oil for Biodiesel

The Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) noted that exports of Indonesian palm oil products to the European Union (EU) reached 506.8 thousand tons in August 2022 . The export volume rose 51.7% from the previous month, which reached 334 thousand tons. GAPKI Executive Director Mukti Sardjono said that in the EU, palm oil is not only used for food and oleo chemicals, but also used for biodiesel.

“I don’t have detailed data on the exact number. What is clear, is that exports of palm oil products are used for biodiesel, and various industrial needs for the food and oleo chemical industries,” he said (13/10/2022).

According to katadata.co.id, Mukti explained that the increase in exports of Indonesian palm products to the EU occupies the third position after India and China. This was driven by the Indonesian government’s policy of setting a zero percent export levy on palm oil products until the end of the year.

“With a zero percent export levy, we hope that the competitiveness of our palm oil exports will increase and can further encourage increased exports,” he said.

In addition, General Chairperson of GAPKI, Joko Supriyono, said that the war between Russia and Ukraine had an impact on the supply of vegetable oil, especially sunflower seed oil. This impact also affects the demand for Indonesian palm oil. He added that some EU manufacturers returned to using palm oil when they were having trouble getting supplies of sunflower oil.

“At first the EU avoided palm oil, but when there was a supply shortage, they finally used palm oil,” said Joko in a virtual press conference holding the Indonesian Palm Oil Conference (IPOC) (12/10/2022).