Choose Palm Oil Free Beauty Products & Save The Environment

Before diving into the subject let’s discuss palm oils.

Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil extracted from the fleshy fruit of oil palms. This oil is used in food products, beauty, and cosmetic products and also as a biofuel. 

Why Is Palm Oil Widely Used In The Beauty Industry?

The beauty industry uses palm oil in beauty products due to its moisturizing and texturizing effect. Palm oil can be found in almost 70% of beauty products. Its derivatives are glycerol, fatty acids, or fatty alcohols, ingredients used in products for their emollient or foaming properties. This oil is used extensively in the beauty industry for its unique and cosmetic properties. Few companies are also there who are making palm oil free products.

There are many advantages of using palm oil derivatives in body care products such as it increases the thickness of the product and helps the skin to retain moisture. It acts as a foaming agent and increases the shelf life of the product.

Another reason for this oil to be widely used in beauty products is its cheapness. Both the flesh and kernel are used to make this oil, so it’s 10 times more productive than other seeds like soybean or rapeseed.

Demand For Palm Oil

Demand for palm oil is increasing day by day due to its versatile use and cheapness. The global demand for palm oil was estimated at 74.6 million tons in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.3% from 2020 to 2027. 

Malaysia and Indonesia are the top players in this segment and they contribute 80 % of global palm oil production. Palm oil is used in almost 50% of consumer goods globally and thus increasing the demand for this particular oil.

Effect Of Palm Oil Production On The Environment

You can find palm oil in almost every product, be it consumer goods or beauty products. Major corporations in the world are the main buyers of this oil and they are driven by profits. To satiate this profit hunger and to meet the increased demand the cultivation of palm oil trees is increasing day by day.

Maybe the production of palm oil is good for industries but unfortunately is not good for the environment. Palm oil tree farming has adverse effects on the environment.

Let’s now discuss how palm oil tree cultivation is affecting our environment.

Global Warming

The cultivation of palm oil trees requires certain climatic conditions. These trees are grown in tropical rainforest areas. Rain forests are considered the lungs of the planet. They absorb the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and produce oxygen. Rainforests help in stabilizing the environment and are home to many wildlife and plants. Rainfall around the world also depends on these rainforests.

But sadly, rainforests are destroyed to increase the plantation of palm oil trees. As per WWF estimates 48 football fields the size of rainforest are cut down every minute and palm oil plantation now covers around 27 million hectares.

Fires are used to clear the forest and sometimes it burns for months. Many times the fire becomes uncontrollable and causes massive damage to the animals and plants. Due to the destruction of rainforests humongous amounts of carbon dioxide are released into the environment resulting in global warming.

This massive destruction of rainforests resulted in irreversible damage, irregularities in rainfall, increased temperatures, and loss of biodiversity.

Effect On Endangered Species

The lush green rainforests are home to many unique and precious animals such as orangutans, Sumatran Elephant, Clouded Leopard, Sumatran Rhino, The Bornean Pygmy Elephant, Proboscis Monkey, etc. There are other species also which we know nothing about who is the habitat of these forests.

Due to intentional fire in these areas many animals are losing their home and their life. So many species are on the verge of extinction. If this trend continues then some animals will be wiped out completely from the earth. It is estimated that wild Orangutans will be extinct in 5-10 years.

As commercial plantation of palm oil continues many roads and infrastructure are built in this area. This makes it easy for poachers to reach these animals.

Effect On Local People

Local people depend on the forest for their livelihood. But due to the increased plantation of palm oil trees, local people are forced to sell the land and in some cases, big players are forcefully grabbing their land. To sustain themselves they are working as laborers in these plantations.

Another big issue is child labor in these plantations. Children work to collect palm kernels, carry and load. But sadly this dark side of palm oil tree plantation is often ignored.

Conclusion

We in our daily life, when using different products, never pay attention to the damage to the environment caused by us. Human greed has resulted in irreplaceable damage to the environment, animals, and people. Knowingly and unknowingly we are destroying our planet. 

We must reflect on our choices. The choice for palm oil-free beauty products may not have a huge impact on the environment but can have a significant role in the long term.