Palm oil comes from the fleshy fruit of oil palms. Unrefined palm oil is sometimes referred to as red palm oil because of its reddish-orange color.

The main source of palm oil is the Elaeis guineensis tree, which is native to West and Southwest Africa. Its use in this region dates back more than 5,000 years.

A similar oil palm known as Elaeis oleifera is found in South America, but it€™s rarely grown commercially. However, a hybrid of the two plants is sometimes used in palm oil production.
Like coconut oil, palm oil is semi-solid at room temperature. However, its melting point is 95°F (35°C), which is considerably higher than 76°F (24°C) for coconut oil. This is due to the different fatty acid compositions of the two oils.
Palm oil is one of the least expensive and most popular oils worldwide, accounting for one-third of global plant oil production.