News

  10/07/2020 | Ingredients

Coconut oil more damaging to environment than palm oil

The issue of deforestation for palm oil production is widely known. Still, a new study from the University of Exeter/UK says coconut oil threatens more species per litre produced than palm or other vegetable oils. The researchers use this example to highlight the difficulties of “conscientious consumption.” However, the authors emphasize that the objective of the study is not to add coconut to the growing list of products that consumers should avoid. Indeed, they note that olives and other crops also raise concerns.

According to the study, deforestation related to coconut oil production affects 20 threatened plant and animal species per million litres produced. This is higher than other oil-producing crops, such as palm (3.8 species per million litres), olive (4.1) and soybean (1.3).

The study shows that the main reason for the high number of species affected by coconut is that the crop is mostly grown on tropical islands with rich diversity and many unique species. The researchers flag that consumers lack objective guidance on the environmental impacts of crop production, undermining their ability to make informed decisions.