Palm oil is semi-solid at room temperature (20°C). The liquid portion could be physically separated from the solid portion of palm oil by fractionation. After fractionation the liquid portion is called “palm olein”, which is commonly bottled and sold as cooking oils. The solid fat portion is called “palm stearin” and it is commonly used to formulate trans-free fats such as margarine, shortening and vegetable ghee. Sometimes the palm olein is further fractionated to a more liquid fraction called “super palm olein”. This oil fraction could withstand colder temperature than palm olein before they cloud or solidify.
Robin Miller is a health and nutrition editor with more than 30 years of industry experience. She researches and writes about the nutritional benefits of palm fruit oil, with the goal of giving readers factual, science-based information that will be useful in their daily lives.
