OFI July/August 2019 by Quartz Business Media

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OILS & FATS INTERNATIONAL

JULY/AUGUST 2019 â&#x2013;ª VOL 35 NO 6

RAPESEED

Tackling pests and climate change

3-MCPDE & GE Mitigation strategies Cover July.indd 1

17/07/2019 11:22:02

CONTENTS

OILS & FATS INTERNATIONAL

IN THIS ISSUE – JULY/AUGUST 2019

FEATURES 3-MCPDE & GE

Plant, Equipment & Technology

Global projects round-up

The latest projects, technology and processing news around the world

NEWS & EVENTS

Transport, Storage & Logistics

Iran: on the Middle EastAsia crossroad Iran sits strategically on the crossroads of the Middle East and central and southern Asia, and must import the majority of its edible oil needs, mostly through its southern ports

Mitigation strategies

Show preview

Tackling the formation of 3-MCPDEs and GEs in edible oils involves following good practices – during cultivation, harvest and transport of oil fruits and seeds, to refiing and post-refining

Comment

Collective effort

News

Rapeseed

Almost two-thirds of palm oil in EU burned as energy

Biofuel News

8 32

Thousands to visit PIPOC 2019 The biennial PIPOC Palm Oil Congress and Exhibition will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 19-21 November

Renewable resources

Tackling pests and climate change Pest and disease control, and climate change, are some of the challenges facing rapeseed producers today

Path to sustainable packaging With governments and producers looking for more sustainable alternatives to single-use plastics, can the oilseed industry provide the solution with new, innovative technology?

USA may lower duties on Argentine biodiesel

Transport News

Ship owners opposed to Indonesia’s B30 biodiesel

Renewable News

Neste and LyondellBassell make plastics from waste oil

Biotech News

Judge to slash US$80M in Roundup award

Diary of Events

International events listing

International Market Review

Global update

Statistics

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Contents.indd 1

Statistical data from Mintec

OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

17/07/2019 11:19:41

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EDITOR'S COMMENT

OILS & FATS INTERNATIONAL

VOL 35 NO 6 JULY/ AUGUST 2019

EDITORIAL: Editor: Serena Lim serenalim@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855066 Assistant Editor: Gabriel Day gabrielday@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855157 SALES: Sales Manager: Mark Winthrop-Wallace markww@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855114 Sales Consultant: Anita Revis anitarevis@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855068 PRODUCTION: Production Editor: Carol Baird carolbaird@quartzltd.com

Collective effort

Major food companies have been accused of “wasting a decade on half measures” when it comes to the sourcing of key commodities linked to deforestation – beef/cattle, soya, palm oil, and pulp and paper. Greenpeace said in June that at least 50M ha of forests globally have been lost from growing agricultural commodities since 2010, the year global brands committed to net-zero deforestation by 2020, under the umbrella Consumer Goods Forum (CGF).

Agribusiness giant Cargill admitted on 13 June that it, and the broader food industry, “will fall short of the 2020 goal”. Ahead of the CGF’s global summit in June, Greenpeace said that the area planted with soya in Brazil had increased by 75% since 2010. By 2050, global meat consumption is set to rise by 76%, soya production by nearly 45% and palm oil production by 60%. “Meat and dairy production is a big driver of forest destruction as trees are cleared for grazing land and to grow crops such as soya, which is used in feed,” Greenpeace says.

Managing Director: Steve Diprose stevediprose@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855164

Also in June, ADM, Bunge, Cargill, COFCO International, Glencore Agriculture and Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) published their ﬁrst reports on soya sourced from Brazil’s Cerrado region, South America’s second largest biome after the Amazon, which has lost nearly half its native vegetation. Covering 2M km2 or 21% of Brazilian territory, the Cerrado accounts for 88M ha or 44% of Brazil’s total agricultural area. It produces about 40% of Brazil’s beef, 84% of its cotton and more than 50% of its soyabeans.

SUBSCRIPTIONS: Elizabeth Barford subscriptions@quartzltd.com +44 (0)1737 855028 Subscriptions, Quartz House, 20 Clarendon Road, Redhill, Surrey RH1 1QX, UK

The reports from the six agribusiness giants – which form the Soft Commodities Forum (SCF) convened by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) – show the percentage of soya they source from 25 key areas in the Cerrado region where they can take collective action to tackle deforestation.

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“This is the first time leading global commodity traders are working together in the soya sector on a pre-competitive project to address sustainability risks they all share, but which no single company can resolve alone,” says Diane Holdorf, WBCSD’s managing director of food and nature. The reports show that in 2018, the six companies sourced in the range of 21.7% (Glencore) to 38.7% (ADM) of their soya from the Cerrado region, where soya covers 17.8M ha or 8% of the Cerrado. In the key 25 Cerrado municipalities, the percentage of soya sourced directly from farmers ranged from 42.9% (Glencore) to 100% (LDC). “By gathering data and reporting every six months, SCF members are taking an important joint step towards better transparency and traceability of soya produced in the Cerrado, particularly to soya bought from cooperatives, aggregators and other third parties, which tends to be less traceable than soya purchased directly from producers,” the SCF says. Projects like these show that while companies may have individual deforestation policies, tackling the problem on a global scale to halt climate change needs a collective effort. “The onus is on brands that use commodities such as beef, palm oil and soya to demonstrate their supply chains are free from deforestation and to slash their use of meat and dairy in favour of affordable plant-based foods,” says Greenpeace. But beyond what companies and governments are doing, the onus is also on us as consumers to consider cutting our meat consumption and ensure we are buying from companies which are truly supporting sustainability, to do our bit for the collective effort. Serena Lim – serenalim@quartzltd.com

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JulyAug comment.indd 1

OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

15/07/2019 16:22:03

NEWS IN BRIEF MALAYSIA/CHINA: Malaysia has struck a palm oil barter deal with China in which it would export an additional US$144M worth of palm oil (about 200,000 tonnes) to the country, said Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok. In return, Malaysia would receive construction services, natural resource products, as well as civilian and defence equipment, The Star newspaper reported on 1 June. Malaysia had been trying to reduce its palm oil stockpile, which hit its highest level in at least 19 years in December 2018, according to Reuters. In April, China agreed to buy 1.9M tonnes of palm oil from Malaysia over the next five years and invest at least US$477M in a bio-jet fuel plant. China is the world’s second largest importer of palm oil after India. QATAR: Leading Qatari food investor Hassad Food Company has acquired a 22.5% stake in the world’s largest organic grain and oilseed company, Sunshine Foods International, reported Global AgInvesting on 1 July. Hassad also signed an agreement with Sunshine's owner, Tiryaki Agro, to provide various food grains to meet local demand. Canada's Sunrise Foods sourced 16 cereal grains for milling, as well as 16 for livestock; six varieties of oilseeds including soyabeans; and 11 varieties of pulses, Global AgInvesting said.

Almost two-thirds of palm oil in EU burned as energy Almost two-thirds of palm oil consumed in the EU was burned as energy last year, according to figures from the European Federation for Transport and Environment (T&E). T&E said on 26 June that 53% of palm oil was used to make biodiesel for cars and trucks, while 12% was used to generate electricity and heating. Palm oil used in biodiesel grew in 2018 by 3% while its use in food and animal feed dropped by 11%. “This shows that the imported deforestation from consum-

ing palm oil in Europe is mainly driven by biofuels policy,” T&E energy director Laura Buffet said. Figures from Oil World showed the EU used over 4M tonnes of crude palm oil to make biodiesel in European biorefineries in 2018. But the bloc imported an additional 1.2M tonnes of refined palm oil biodiesel, T&E reported. Imports of refined biodiesel tripled from 2017 to 2018 after the lifting of anti-dumping duties on Indonesian palm oil and Argentine soyabean oil

biodiesel – with palm and soya accounting for around 86% of all biodiesel imports. However, under the EU's revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED) II, first generation biofuels would start to be phased out from this year until 2030, T&E said. A delegated act determining high indirect land use change (ILUC)-risk feedstocks, to supplement RED II, also classified palm oil from large plantations as a high ILUC-risk feedstock that should be capped at its 2019 level of consumption.

Sesame oil used in new GM malaria trial

Sesame oil was used in a ground-breaking trial in Burkina Faso which genetically modified a fungus in order to kill malaria-carrying mosquitoes, with a 99% collapse in mosquito populations, BBC News reported on 31 May. Researchers in the study by the University of Maryland and Burkina Faso's Research Institute of Health and Sciences selected the

metarhizium pingshaense fungus, which naturally infects the anopheles malaria-spreading mosquito. They genetically modified the fungus to produce a toxin found in the venom of a species of funnel web spider found in Australia. The fungus would start making the toxin once it was inside a mosquito and was tested in a 6,500ft2 fake village complete with plants, huts, water sources and food for mosquitoes, BBC said. The fungal spores were mixed with sesame oil and wiped onto black cotton sheets. The mosquitoes had to land on the sheets to be exposed to the fungus. Researchers started the experiments with 1,500 mosquitoes and their numbers soared when left alone. But when the spider toxin fungus was used, there were just 13 mosquitoes left after 45 days. The fungus was specific to the mosquitoes and did not affect other insects such as bees. The World Health Organization said more than 400,000 people died of malaria each year, and there were around 219M cases in 87 countries in 2017.

Europol arrests 20 people and seizes 150,000 litres of fradulent olive oil EU law enforcement agency Europol seized 150,000 litres of fraudulent olive oil and arrested 20 people in a joint operation with the Italian NAS Carabinieri and the Tribunal of Darmstadt in Germany. Europol said on 14 May that the gang had tampered with the colour of low-quality sunflower oil by adding soyabean oil, chlorophyll and beta carotene to make the product look like extra virgin olive oil. 4 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

General News JulyAug.indd 2

The accused acquired 1M litres/year of sunflower oil for about €1M (US$1.1M) and resold the processed product at prices between €5 (US$5.60) and €10 (US$11.14) per litre. The fraudulent olive oil was produced at an unregulated mill in Italy and transported to warehouses in Germany for distribution. The criminal organisation responsible had earned about €8M (US$9M) annually

from their activity, Europol said. The investigation began in 2015 after the Italian Ministry of Health alerted authorities of the sale of counterfeit olive oil. In the same year, a joint operation between Europol and international police organisation Interpol resulted in the seizure of €230M (US$290M) of counterfeit and substandard food and beverages across 61 countries, Olive Oil Times wrote. www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:45:21

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NEWS

FDA to allow qualified EPA/DHA claims The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that it will not object to the use of certain qualified health claims saying that consuming eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) omega 3 fatty acids in food or dietary supplement may reduce the risk of hypertension and coronary heart disease. The FDA said on 19 June that

IN BRIEF NIGERIA: The country is planning to increase its palm oil production by 700% over the next eight years to improve its foreign exchange earnings, Bloomberg reported on 14 June. The new policy would boost local production to about 5M tonnes/year from the current 600,000 tonnes/year by investing as much as 180 billion naira (US$500M), starting this year, the Trade and Investment Ministry said. Bloomberg said the new policy would remove the 75% duty rebate on refined palm oil imports; extend a current three-year tax holiday to five years for all producing and processing companies; and introduce a five-year restriction on crude and refined palm oil imports to large-scale refineries and crushing plants. Felix Nwabuko, the CEO of Prescott Plc, the country’s largest palm oil producer, said the company was expanding, and expected a 500 tonne/hour refinery to begin operating in the first quarter of 2020, and its milling capacity to increase from 60 to 90 tonne/hour by next January. Nigeria was the world’s fifth largest producer of palm oil, although it accounted for less than 2% of global production, Bloomberg wrote. Its palm oil imports totalled 600,000 tonnes at the end of 2018. 6 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

General News JulyAug.indd 3

it was responding specifically to a health claim petition filed in August 2014 by The Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s (GOED). It said EPA and DHA omega 3 fatty acids were found primarily in some fatty fish, fish oils and dietary supplements. “While there is some credible evidence suggesting that combined intake of EPA and

DHA from conventional foods and dietary supplements may reduce the risk of hypertension by lowering blood pressure, this evidence is inconclusive and highly inconsistent,” it said. The agency found that the overall evidence did not meet the ‘significant scientific agreement’ standard required for an authorised health claim but did meet the ‘credible evidence’

standard for a qualified health claim. To prevent consumer deception, the FDA said the qualified health claim had to be accompanied by a disclaimer, such as 'consuming EPA and DHA combined may help lower blood pressure in the general population and reduce the risk of hypertension. However, FDA has concluded that the evidence is inconsistent and inconclusive'.

US grand jury charges 21 in UCO theft ring

Stock photo

Twenty-one people have been indicted by a grand jury in the USA for stealing large quantities of used cooking oil (UCO) in a major grease theft ring, Biodiesel Magazine reported on 21 June. According to the US Department of Justice and court records, large quantities of UCO were stolen in North Carolina, Virginia and Tennesse, and transported to New Jersey for

sale and distribution, The conspirators allegedly used box trucks equipped with containers designed to store and transport liquids, pumps, hoses and burglary tools to steal large quantities of UCO. A warehouse in Durham, North Carolina allegedly consolidated and stored the stolen grease, which was further transported to Virginia and beyond. “Used cooking oil has become a sought-after commodity by biodiesel companies, and restaurants use the sale of this oil as another source of revenue,” said John Eisert, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Charlotte, North Carolina. “This team of co-conspirators had an elaborate scheme to steal thousands of gallons of cooking oil for their own profit in violation of several US laws.” Biodiesel Magazine said the rendering industry estimated that there was an annual loss of some US$45-$75M from the theft of UCO. Some of the 21 defendants had also been charged with immigration crimes, including failure to register with immigration officials and harbouring aliens. Six were currently considered fugitives from justice.

Clearer biodiesel policy leads to recovery of Avril French agro-industrial group Avril has seen a notable recovery in the second half of 2018, after cutting its biodiesel production and seed crushing at the start of the year due to an influx of Argentine biodiesel into Europe. The group’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to €154M (US$174M) for the year ending 31 December, up 26%, and net profit was €16M (US$18.2M) compared with a net loss of €56M (US$63.8M) a year earlier. “2018 was clearly a year of

two halves,” said Avril CEO Jean-Philippe Puig. “During the first six months, the group had to deal with an unfavourable economic context. The second half ended more satisfactorily, notably under the effect of decisions that clarified the horizon with respect to regulatory issues, such as the future for biodiesel in Europe.” “In December 2018, the new European Renewable Energy Directive (REDII) maintained the level of incorporation of first generation biofuels at 7% [until 2030],” Avril said on 4 June. In January 2019, the EU also

announced a compromise to limit unfair competition from Argentine soya biodiesel, by fixing a quota and a minimum price below which anti-subsidy duties would be imposed. The market stabilisation allowed Avril to improve its performance in oilseed processing and biodiesel production. Avril operates in five business lines, with Oilseeds Processing encompassing crushing, refining and the sale of oils, biodiesel and meals; its Oils & Condiments line, under the Lesieur subsidiary; and oleoechemicals, under Oleon. www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:45:28

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BIOFUEL NEWS

USA may lower duties on Argentine biodiesel

The USA’s National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has strongly criticised the US Department of Commerce (USDC)’s preliminary decision to lower countervailing duties on Argentine biodiesel from 72% to 10%. “The USDC preliminarily found that Argentina’s recent changes to its export tax regime eliminated certain government subsidies provided to the country’s biodiesel producers. If its results are made ﬁnal, the USDC will reduce the existing countervailing duty rates on Argentine biodiesel from their current average of 72% to 10%,” the NBB said in a press release on 2 July. The USDC’s decision was made as a result of a “changed circumstances review”

requested by the Argentine government in September 2018. However, the USDC ruled that changed circumstances did not warrant any amendments to anti-dumping duties on Argentine biodiesel. Its ﬁnal determination is due September. The NBB’s Fair Trade Coalition, consisting of the NBB and 15 US biodiesel producers, petitioned the USDC to start an anti-dumping investigation against Argentina in March 2017. “During the period of the anti-dumping and countervailing duties investigations (January-December 2016), an export tax of 30% on soyabeans was in eﬀect in Argentina,” the USDC said.

The tax depressed domestic soyabean prices to nearly 40% lower than world market prices. This ensured the availability of relatively low-priced soyabeans for Argentina’s domestic processing industries, notably for biodiesel, which was imported into the USA at a price below fair value, the USDC ruled. The USDC then ordered countervailing and anti-dumping duties on Argentine biodiesel in January 2018 and April 2018. In its request, the Argentine government said it had lowered its export tax on soyabeans to 28.3%, and raised it on biodiesel from 0% to 25.3%, as of September 2018, to foster convergence of the taxes.

Source: Total

Total La Mède biorefinery starts production

IN BRIEF USA: The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ﬁnalised regulatory changes to allow the year-round sale of petrol blended with 15% ethanol (E15), ending the summer time ban that has been in place since 2011. The EPA’s decision on 30 May ended the ban on E15 sales between 1 June to 15 September, which was introduced due to concerns that E15 contributed to smog in hot weather. Reuters said the move was regarded as a win for the farm lobby, which had argued that the E15 ban hurt farmers by limiting demand for corn-based ethanol. 8 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

Biofuel news July2.indd 2

French oil giant Total has started up production at its La Mède biorefinery (pictured), with the first two batches of biofuel coming on stream. Total said on 3 July the facility located in southern France encompassed: • A biorefinery with an annual biofuel capacity of 500,000 tonnes. • An 8 megawatt solar farm. • A unit to produce 50,000m2/year of AdBlue, an additive that reduces nitrogen oxide emissions from trucks. • A logistics and storage hub with a capacity of 1.3M m2/year. • A training centre

Total said the bioreﬁnery could produce 500,000 tonnes of hydrotreated vegetable

oil and it would produce biodiesel and biojet fuel for the aviation industry. The feedstock would be 60-70% sustainable vegetable oils (rapeseed, sunﬂower and palm oil) and 30-40% animal fat, used cooking oil and residues from waste or the pulp and paper industry. The La Mède reﬁnery has faced several delays and controversy over the use of imported palm oil as a feedstock. “In an agreement with the government, Total pledges to process no more than 300,000 tonnes/year of palm oil — less than 50% of the total volume of raw materials needed — and at least 50,000 tonnes of French-grown rapeseed, creating another market for domestic agriculture,” Total stated.

EPA proposes renewable fuel volumes for 2020 The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed its 2020 renewable volume obligations (RVOs) and the 2021 RVO for biomass-based diesel, Ethanol Producer reported on 5 July. The proposal released under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) required 91bn litres of

renewable fuels to be blended into the US fuel supply in 2020, up from 90.5bn litres in 2019. Ethanol Producer wrote that the 2020 RVO included 23bn litres of advanced biofuels, 11bn litres of biomass-based diesel - which was set last year and is the same for 2021, and

2.4bn litres of cellulosic biofuel (an increase of 545M litres from the 2019 ﬁgure). The proposed RVO would require biofuels to make up 10.92% of US transportation fuel, including 2.75% advanced biofuels, 1.99% biomass-based diesel and 0.29% cellulosic biofuel.

Trade deal opens EU to more Mercosur ethanol imports

South American trading bloc Mercosur and the EU have reached a trade agreement establishing a 450,000 tonnes/year quota for duty free ethanol to enter Europe. Biodiesel Magazine reported on 2 July that an additional 200,000 tonnes/year of ethanol for all uses would be subjected to an in-quota duty of one-third of the current rate. According to the EU, the volume would be

phased in in six equal annual stages. European association for renewable ethanol ePure has criticised the deal, calling it a blow to Europe’s farmers and ethanol industry. ePure said the deal made concessions to Mercosur counties (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) and essentially sacriﬁced the EU’s agricultural sector and domestic production of ethanol in exchange for gains elsewhere. www.ofimagazine.com

17/07/2019 11:21:32

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OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

TRANSPORT NEWS IN BRIEF BELGIUM: Dutch tank storage company Standic announced on 18 June that it was investing some €200M to build a new storage terminal in Antwerp port, doubling its capacity. The new terminal would have an initial capacity of around 95,000m3 and a potential total capacity of some 230,000m3, with the first stage of the project slated for completion in first quarter 2021. Like its existing terminal in Dordrecht, the Netherlands, the new terminal would focus on niche chemicals, including oleochemicals. “Our stainless steel heatable and fully dedicated tanks and systems are ideally suited for this,” Standic commercial director Paul Voogt said. “We are also planning to obtain suitable licenses to store oleochemicals for the food and pharmaceutical industries.” ARGENTINA: A nationwide strike protesting austerity measures under President Maurico Marci halted work at key grain and oilseed ports and brought airports to a standstill, Reuters reported on 29 May. Argentina is the world’s third largest soyabean exporter behind the USA and Brazil, exporting 6.8M tonnes of the crop in 2018/19, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

Ship owners opposed to Indonesia’s B30 biodiesel Indonesia began testing B30 biodiesel on 13 June but ship owners are opposed to the higher blend, citing higher operating costs and poor performance in engines, Jakarta Post wrote. B30 tests with passenger vehicles and trucks would be conducted over the next four months, the Star Online reported Dadan Kusdiana, head of research and development at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, as saying. The ministry also planned to start testing B30 use in trains, ships and agricultural machinery. However, the River, Lake and Water Transportation Operators Association (Gapasdap) said the government should not be making B30 mandatory in 2020 when it had only focused on testing in automotive engines. The government began its biodiesel program in 2014 to reduce carbon emissions and reduce

Indonesia’s dependence on fuel imports by introducing B10 biodiesel, a blend of 10% palm oil in regular diesel fuel, the Jakarta Post reported. B20 use became mandatory in September 2018, while B30 will be mandatory in 2020. Gapasdap secretary general Aminuddin Rifai said the use of B20 had already had a negative impact on ship operations, and vessels registered under the association would suffer significant losses if they had to use B30. “Compared to pure diesel fuel, B20 has a higher viscosity rate, which results in the slowing of the combustion process in the engines and leaves more unburnt leftovers,” he said. The government was targeting 9-10M tonnes of palm oil for the production of B30, with annual biodiesel use reaching an estimated 6.9M kilolitres by 2025 from the current 3.M kilolitres.

Russian bank buys interest in railway group

Russian state bank VTB has reached an agreement to buy a controlling interest in railway holding company RusTransCom (RTC group). RTC was one of the largest carriers of agricultural and forest cargo in Russia, with 68,000 rolling stock units including tanks for vegetable

oils, hoppers cars, gondola cars and universal platforms, World Grain wrote. VTB said on 3 June that it would buy 50% plus one share of RTC. The bank said railway transport provided about 50% of grain deliveries to deep-water ports and was the most ef-

fective way of delivering grain from remote regions of Russia for redistribution to export shipments in ports. VTB had acquired other grain assets recently. Last August, it acquired a 10.93% stake in Novorossiysk Grain Plant, one of the largest grain terminals in Russia. In February, it agreed to buy Novorossiysk Grain Terminal (pictured), one of Russia’s largest port terminals for the transshipment of grains and oilseeds. In June, it had considered purchasing a stake in Taman port grain terminal to further expand its grain market investment, World Grain wrote.

Multi-million dollar rail project set for Port of Greater Baton Rogue The state of Louisiana and its governor John Bel Edwards have committed US$20M for a rail project for the Port of Greater Baton Rouge, which will allow efficient transfers for grain, soyabeans, corn and other commodities. “These rail enhancements will mean better business and more profitable operations for our farmers, the port and major tenants like Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC).” World Grain quoted Edwards as saying on 5 June. 10 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

Transport news July.indd 2

The funding would complete a second project bringing four rail tracks deeper into the port to serve Dutch agritrader LDC’s Port Allen Elevator Facility, which could ship about 5M to 6M tonnes/year of agricultural commodities. Edwards said high river stages at the port had interfered with barge offloading. Companies like LDC were required to transfer commodities to the elevator facility with additional equipment at a slower pace.

Having the option to deliver commodities via unit trains would benefit agricultural producers and their customers. Mike Strian, Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry’s commissioner said: “The expanded rail capacity will increase the volume and transfer of goods rapidly.” LDC had been operating at the port since June 2011 and had completed over US$200M in improvements at its Port Allen Elevator facilities, World Grain wrote. www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:23:06

RENEWABLE NEWS IN BRIEF USA: NEXT Renewable Fuels, USA, and oil and gas giant BP have entered a long-term feedstock supply agreement, in which NEXT will buy 2M tonnes/year of renewable feedstocks from BP for its planned renewable diesel facility in Port Westward, Oregon. BP would supply used cooking oils, animal fats and tallows, greases and seed oils from its global feedstock aggregation and sourcing network under the agreement, altenergymag reported on 28 May. NEXT would continue to develop its Oregon renewable diesel facility – a more than US$1bn investment – with an expected processing capacity of 2.7bn litres/year. BP’s multi-year supply to the plant was the largest single renewable feedstock sourcing agreement contracted for a renewable fuel facility, alterngymag said. “Sourcing of quality renewable feedstock is a critical component of bringing on-line the world’s largest renewable diesel facility,” NEXT president Lou Soumas said. NEXT said it expected the Oregon plant to be completed in 2021, when BP would start supplying the facility.

Neste and LyondellBasell make plastics from waste oil Finnish renewable diesel producer Neste and chemicals giant LyondellBasell have successfully produced bio-based polypropylene and low-density polyethylene at a commercial scale, the companies announced on 18 June. The firms said it was the first time these materials had been produced in parallel through successfully converting waste oil and residues into several thousand tonnes of bio-based plastics. The plastics were of a high enough quality to be

approved for food packaging. LyondellBasell used Neste’s renewable hydrocarbons to make the materials at its site in Wesseling, Germany, before an independent third party tested the polymer products and confirmed they contained more than 30% renewable content. The chemicals giant had already sold some of the renewable products produced in the trial to multiple food and household product manufacturers. Neste’s president and CEO Peter Vanacker said: “It is

very satisfying to see Neste’s renewable hydrocarbons performing perfectly in a commercial scale production of bio-based polymers, providing a drop-in replacement option to fossil materials. “This collaboration with LyondellBasell marks a major milestone in the commercialisation of Neste’s renewable polymers and chemicals business.” LyondellBasell is one of the largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world.

Kerfoot signs Polish distribution agreement

Kerfoot, UK, has signed a distribution deal with Cornelius Polska which will see its personal care oils available throughout Poland. The agreement, effective on 1 July, supports the distribution of Kerfoot’s speciality organic

oils for personal care applications, including carrier and essential oils, as well as botanical extracts. “Poland is a key market for Kerfoot, with it being the sixth largest cosmetics market in Europe and offering significant growth potential for the business,” said Kerfoot chief executive Sarah Bradley. “Cornelius Polska is one of the fastest growing distributors in Poland and its reputation for offering quality products to a wide range of customers aligns perfectly with Kerfoot’s approach to being one of the leading providers of oils to the personal care sector.” Kerfoot is part of the international French agro-industrial Avril Group. Its activities take in bulk oils, packed oils, branded and own label oils, and speciality oils for the cosmetic, food and nutritional markets. These include carrier and essential oils, butters and waxes.

Genomatica buys REG Life Science’s renewable chemical assets US bio-chemicals firm Genomatica announced on 6 June that it had acquired the renewable chemical assets of the REG Life Sciences division of the Renewable Energy Group, a leading supplier of advanced biofuels in North America. “The acquisition provides us with our third major product platform, allowing us to expand into household and industrial cleaning products, and flavours and fragrances, further growing our ingredients for the apparel, packaging and personal care markets,” the company said. The deal would enhance Genomatica’s ability to make long-chain chemicals from renewable feedstocks used to make surfac12 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

Renewable news.indd 2

tants, cosmetics, solvents, polymers, fuels and food ingredients. “These oleochemicals are typically derived from palm oil, vegetable oils, or animal fats, or synthetically from fossil feedstocks such as petroleum. They range from eight to 18 carbon atoms in length and may contain multiple functional groups, resulting in long-chain alcohols, esters, acids, ketones, aldehydes, alkanes, amines, amides and branched products. Genomatica said its approach of making the chemicals via fermentation from natural, plant-based sugars or biomass-based feedstocks was more sustainable and environmentally friendly.

The company said the assets it had acquired included technology for making drop-in long-chain chemicals and various novel and proprietary products being researched and/or under development. They added to its existing ‘C4’ platform, which had already delivered commercial products for bio-based 1,4-butanediol (BDO), used to make biodegradable plastics and apparel, and for butylene glycol used for cosmetics and personal care applicaitons. This was in addition to its ‘C6’ platform, with chemicals under development including bio-based caprolactam to make 100% renewable nylon for apparel and carpet.

www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:24:02

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BIOTECH NEWS

Judge slashes US$80.3M Roundup award A US judge has slashed an US$80.3M damages award against German chemicals group Bayer to US$25.3M, in a case where a jury ruled the company’s glyphosate weedkiller as a “substantial factor” in causing a man’s cancer, Reuters reported. In March, a San Francisco jury ruled that the Roundup weedkiller of US agrochemical firm Monsanto – which Bayer acquired in June 2018 – had contributed to causing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) in California resident Edwin Hardeman. The jury awarded US$5.3M in compensatory and US$75M in punitive damages to Hardeman on 27 March. However, on 15 July, district judge Vince Chhabria slashed the US$75M punitive damage award, saying that while Monsanto “deserves to be punished”, the higher award was “constitutionally impermissible” because it was nearly 15 times the com-

IN BRIEF USA: Genetically engineered (GE) wheat plants resistant to Roundup glyphosate weed killer have been discovered in an unplanted agricultural field in Washington state, World Grain reported on 10 June. According to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, there was no evidence that GE wheat had entered the food supply. World Grain wrote that the USDA enhanced its oversight of regulated GE wheat field trials after previous detections of unapproved plants in North America. Developers were now required to apply for a permit for GE wheat trials.

pensatory damages award, Reuters said. “Monsanto’s conduct, while reprehensible, does not warrant a ratio of that magnitude, particularly in the absence of evidence showing intentional concealment of a known or obvious safety risk,” wrote Chhabria, who rejected Bayer’s bid for a new trial. In a statement, Bayer called Chhabria’s decision “a step in the right direction” but said it still planned to appeal. Bayer said the verdict and damages award “conflict with both the weight of the extensive science that supports the safety of Roundup, and the conclusions of leading health regulators in the USA and around the world that glyphosate is not carcinogenic.” Bayer faces more than 13,400 Roundup lawsuits nationwide and was ordered to pay US$2bn in May to a California

couple who developed cancer after using Roundup and US$78M to a former school groundskeeper in October 2018. The verdicts caused Bayer’s share price to plummet, with its current market valuation at US$56bn, less than the US$63bn Bayer paid for Monsanto, according to Reuters. In June, Bayer announced it had hired an external US lawyer, John H Beisner, to advise its supervisory board on trial issues, Reuters reported. It also announced that it would invest US$5.6bn over the next 10 years in new weedkiller research and reduce its environmental impact by 30% by 2030, with measures such as more precise and sparing application of crop chemicals. Monsanto supplies farmers across the world with crop protection products and biotech crop seeds, such as soyabeans, corn, cotton, wheat and canola.

ASTM develops new standards for GMOs International standards organisation ASTM International is developing a new standard to classify microorganisms, aimed at giving more detailed information beyond whether they are genetically modified (GM) or not. The proposed standard, being developed by ASTM’s industrial biotechnology committee would soon be published as E3214, the or-

ganisation said on 25 June. “This standard will give biotechnology industry customers, the public and regulators more information on the composition and intended uses for a given product,” said Joseph McAuliffe, ASTM International member and senior principal scientist at DuPont Industrial Biosciences. The genetic classification system for industrial micro-

organisms (GCSIM) would categorise industrial microorganisms (IMs) based primarily on their genotype (their deoxyribonucleic acid [DNA] sequence), with less emphasis on the techniques used to generate them. Both the source and nature of any genetic modifications would be used to differentiate between IMs and allow subclassifications of strains currently grouped together and designated as genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs). The standard did not cover higher organisms, including plants and animals, and downstream products derived from IMs that do not contain genetic material (purified enzymes and their products).

USA revising rules on GMOs to reduce regulatory burden The USA is revising its rules on the import, transport and release of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in its first comprehensive revision of these regulations since they were established in 1987. In a proposal announced on 6 June, the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) said the review aimed to reduce the regulatory burden to reflect advances in genetic engineering (GE) and better under14 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

Biotech news.indd 2

standing of plant pest risks. APHIS said regulatory efforts would focus on the properties of the GE organism rather than the production methods used. “Those that pose a plant pest risk would fall within the scope of the proposed regulations and require permits for movement.” Plant pest risk was defined as “the possibility of harm resulting from introducing, disseminating, or exacerbating the impact of a plant pest,” the agency said.

Other GE non-plant organisms that did not pose a plant pest risk would not require permits for movement. Certain categories of modified plants would also be exempt from regulation because they could be produced through traditional breeding techniques and were unlikely to pose a greater plant pest risk than traditionally bred crops, APHIS added. The deadline for comments on the proposed rule would be 5 August.

www.ofimagazine.com

17/07/2019 11:50:30

DIARY OF EVENTS 22-23 August 2019

25-27 September 2019

6-7 November 2019

22-23 November 2019

Asia Palm Oil Conference Ambassador City Jomtien Pattaya Chonburi, Thailand www.palmoil-conference.com

Globoil India 2019 Mumbai, India globoilindia.com/index.html

World Oilseed Congress 2019 Lviv, Ukraine worldoilseed.org

4-5 September 2019 6th High Oleic Oils Congress Lisbon, Portugal higholeicmarket.com/hoc2019 5 September 2019 Black Sea Oil Trade Hilton, Kyiv, Ukraine bsg.ukragroconsult.com/ bso/2019/en/conference 8-13 September 2019 FOSFA Basic Introductory Course Egham, Surrey, UK www.fosfa.org 17-19 September 2019

5-11 October 2019

7 November 2019

PORAM Annual Events 2019 (Forum, Golf & Dinner) Doresett Grand Subang Hotel Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia poram.org.my/p

18th AOCS Latin American Congress and Exhibition on Fats, Oils and Lipids Foz do Iguacu, Brazil www.meetings@aocs.org

China International Oils & Oilseeds Conference (CIOC) Guangzhou China www.dce.com.cn/ CIOCEN/464520/464521/ index.html

Fuels of the Future 2020 CityCube Berlin Germany www.fuels-of-the-future.com

8-9 October 2019 The Annual Association of Bulk Terminal Operators (ABTO) Conference MĂśvenpick Hotel, Amsterdam, Netherlands www.bulkterminals.org/ events.html

9-10 November 2019

9-12 February 2020

2nd AOCS China Section Conference Guangzhou, China www.aocs.org/networkand-connect/membership/ sections#china-section

World Congress on Oils & Fats 2020/ISF Lectureship Series International Convention Centre, Sydney Australia wcofsydney2020.com

8-10 October 2019

19-21 November 2019

8-10 March 2020

The 11th Palmex Indonesia Medan, Indonesia www.palmoilexpo.com

International Palm Oil Congress & Exhibition 2019 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia pipoc.mpob.gov.my

10th International Symposium on Deep-Frying Hagen, Germany www.dgfett.de/index.php

20-23 October 2019

International Agricultural Fair on Processing and Storage of Agricultural Products Kyiv, Ukraine oil.agroinkom.com.ua/en

17th Euro Fed Lipid Congress Seville, Spain www.eurofedlipid.org/pages/ sevilla.html

18-19 September 2019

28 Oct-1 November 2019

Middle East Grains & Oils Congress: Beruit Edition Beirut, Lebanon www.apk-inform.com/en/ conferences/lebanon2019/ about

86th NRA Annual Convention California, USA www.nationalrenderers.org/ events/convention

18-19 September 2019 4th Future of Surfactants Summit North America Chicago, USA www.wplgroup.com/aci/ event/surfactants-summitamerica 25-26 September 2019 7th Oleochemicals Outlook Singapore www.cmtevents. com/aboutevent. aspx?ev=190923&

20-21 January 2020

30 Oct-1 November 2019 15th Indonesian Palm Oil Conference and 2020 Price Outlook Bali, Indonesia www.gapkiconference.org 3-6 November 2019 17th Annual Roundtable Meeting on Sustainable Palm Oil (RT17) Bangkok, Thailand rspo.org/news-and-events/ events/save-the-date-17thannual-roundtable-meetingon-sustainable-palm-oil-rt17

For a full events list, visit: www.ofimagazine.com www.ofimagazine.com

Diary jul 2.indd 1

OFI â&#x20AC;&#x201C; JULY/AUGUST 2019

17/07/2019 11:23:52

INTERNATIONAL MARKET REVIEW

Mother nature impacts the m The US soyabean industry is starting to struggle with issues arrising from weather, the growing rate of swine flu in China and its trade war with the country John Buckley

Soya supply up

As recently as May, rain-delayed US maize planting appeared to be paving the way for more soya acres and a bigger crop than the USDA recently forecast (113M tonnes). However, soya’s rain delays have recently cast doubt on the outcome and the USDA itself has cut its planted area forecast from 34M ha to 33M ha. Even if ideal weather from now on improves (expected lower) yields, the crop will be well down on last year’s record 123.7M, perhaps well under 110M. Yet an extra 15M tonnes of carryover stock from this 16 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

John Buckley.indd 2

Source: John Buckley

S soya farmers usually fear droughts more than rain but this year has been an exception, with heavy rain resulting in record planting delays, potentially foiling farmers’ plans to cut sowings by less than the government had forecast in its spring planting intentions report. It might mitigate US soya’s worst surplus scenario in recent memory. However, it may not be enough to counter rising competition from large Latin American oilseed crops, especially at a time when swine flu outbreaks and tariff-blocked US supplies threaten to curb total demand from China. Meanwhile, palm oil remains on the floor during seasonally rising production and an uncertain export outlook. Along with this season’s jump in sunflower oil supplies, it continues to mute the impact of a tighter supply balance for rapeseed oil. Even supplies of that item seem to be turning out looser than expected as a breakdown in political relations stops China buying Canadian canola. India’s so far faltering monsoon could bump up demand from the largest vegetable oil importer. Middle East tensions and a consequent frisky crude oil market may also encourage oilseed producing countries to use a lot more vegetable oil – especially palm - in biodiesel.

Figure 1: CBOT soyabean futures (US$ cents/bushel) surplus season will still mean total US supply will be bigger than the past year’s. While Brazil’s current crop is 4M-5M tonnes down from last year’s 122M tonnes, Argentina’s has recovered from last year’s droughts to around 56M tonnes, raising the two countries’ joint supply by some 13M tonnes. Much stronger Argentine crush and product exports are likely to restrain internationally traded oil and meal prices. All soyabean exporters are meanwhile suffering from lost Chinese trade, shown in lower import numbers. The USA had already thrown away a huge chunk of its trade when US President Donald Trump started a tariff war with China. Now China is seen taking less overall for a second year running to feed a pig industry damaged by African swine fever. Some analysts estimate up to 30% of its pig production has been affected by outbreaks and China may need to cull 200M hogs. The USDA forecasts its soyabean imports at 85M tonnes, 9M tonnes less than last year. Questions that have arisen include: will deficits in China’s pork supply be offset by consumers eating more poultry, another heavy soya meal-consuming sector? Or will China import more pork, feeding overseas suppliers’ crush and meal consumption? Or will Chinese consumers steer clear of pork altogether? Will China take the 6M tonnes of, as yet, unshipped US soyabeans it purchased prior to the trade truce between the two countries breaking down? Buyers may be found elsewhere for any diverted cargoes but that may require some price discounting. China is also the world’s top soya oil consumer, its demand recently growing

by as much as 1M tonnes/year to an estimated 16.5M tonnes in 2017/18 However, that demand has been levelling off this season and next, as more of its underlying vegetable oil demand goes to palm oil. US soyabean crush margins have been positive, mainly on healthy domestic demand for oil and meal. The country’s excess soyabeans were seen staying around a record 27M tonnes even at the close of next season (September 2020), assuming the current crop gets normal weather. These doubts had pushed the CBOT’s front month soyabean futures down (see Figure 1 above) to multi-year lows in May, as traders feared unplanted maize acres would boost the final soya tally. Planting intentions may also be skewed by how government support payments to US farmers for lost Chinese trade and rainprevented planting plays out. These factors suggest further price volatility ahead. USDA analysts said it could be years before record US soyabean stocks clear and prices recover fully although recent market behaviour suggests that might be rather pessimistic. But even if prices are better than the USDA expects, that may encourage Brazil and Argentina to plant more soya this autumn, especially given their weak currencies against US dollarpriced exports. Brazil has already been locking in better prices with an unprecedented forward sales programme. However, its producers have been concerned about China cutting overall imports. Argentina has, meanwhile, been making overtures to China to help find a home for its own crop rebound. With the US Soyabean Export Council www.ofimagazine.com

19/07/2019 15:30:32

INTERNATIONAL MARKET REVIEW

warning that China may never resume US soyabean purchases at historical levels, CBOT soyabeans recently traded at their cheapest since 2008/09. However, in recent weeks, the planting lag has propelled them back up by some 16% to three-month highs. The USDA’s current prognosis is for slightly cheaper physical soyabeans and meal next season, but firmer soyabean oil, based on rising food and biodiesel demand. Futures, meanwhile, point to soyabean prices starting to recover next year – which looks optimistic considering current surplus stock forecasts. Some South American sources were reported to be hoping China would import a lot more soyabean oil to replace supplies that will not be produced domestically (given lower soyabean imports) as its meal-driven crush declines. That should keep South American, possibly US soya processors busy in the season ahead. However, where will all the extra meal go? Soyabean oil recently hit its lowest point of the year as firmer energy markets, backing this season’s expected higher biodiesel usage, showed signs of flagging.

Palm oil needs better exports

The Malaysian Bursa palm oil futures market has continued to struggle well under the US$500 equivalent level during persistent unease about lacklustre exports as the Asian summer season of peak production begins. June estimates from Malaysian cargo surveyors made bleak reading – down by up to 20% on the month after official Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) data recorded an increase of just 3.5% in May (albeit the best shipment number so far this year). Malaysian traders were

Figure 2: Crude vegetable oil prices (US$/tonne) www.ofimagazine.com

John Buckley.indd 3

Government body Statistics Canada had been widely expected to cut the country’s rapeseed planting forecast, so failed to shift the bearish mood gripping this market amid the loss of Canada’s key export trade to China. The new planting estimate of 8.4M ha is down 8.2% on the year in response to stock build-up in the wake of China’s trade cut-off. The crop may also start slowly after a recent dry spell. However, at this stage, that should be offset by 3.9M tonnes of old crop being carried into the new season – 1.5M tonnes more than last year – amid the uncertain export outlook. Some much-needed rain in the dry prairies, a faltering trend in the soya complex and a firmer movement in the Canadian dollar (disadvantaging exports), helped erode the spot Winnipeg canola futures price to four-year lows. Paris futures also softened with the Canadian market and ideas that this season’s tight EU balance can be loosened with cheaper imports. However, will China continue to shun Canada after the country arrested Meng Wanzhou, vice president of Chinese technology firm Huawei in December? If so, can exports to other markets help fill the gap? In its last report, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada saw no recovery in next season’s trade, rather a decline to just 8M tonnes. The European rapeseed market has probably absorbed most of its own negative crop news. Normal weather was expected to offset smaller planted area before a recent heatwave began to question this. However, bigger Ukrainian and Russian crops can supplement EU supplies. Dry weather has also cast some doubt on recent USDA forecasts for a bigger Australian rapeseed crop. But while total world rapeseed supply could contract further in the coming season, so may demand.

Sunflowerseed outlook stable

Source: John Buckley

he market

Rapeseed crop shrinking

disappointed at a 37% fall in China’s May demand and a 10% drop for Pakistan, although India’s imports at least stayed steady – an improvement after its total palm oil imports from all sources dropped by over 9% on the year in April. The EU – supposed to be cutting palm use – meanwhile managed a surprisingly large near 43% jump in its May demand. For the year to date, top importers – China, India and the EU – have all bought more, contributing to a 12.5% rise in total demand for Malaysian oil. With production running 9% higher on the year, that has eroded some of the large stocks carried into 2019. However, that has not prevented the Malaysian Bursa futures contract hitting multi-month lows amid mixed signals from energy/biofuel markets and Malaysia’s fluctuating currency. China had been doing well on promises to take more palm oil from Malaysia, agreeing to a barter deal involving Chinese construction services. In April, it pledged to buy around 1.9M tonnes more over the coming five years. China is the world’s third largest palm oil importer, just behind Europe and forecast to take 6M tonnes in the coming season. However, the main growth in palm oil demand in recent years has been within top producer Indonesia where biofuel – and food – demand helped boost use from 7.2M tonnes four years ago to almost 13M tones this season. Palm oil remains under threat from severe demand cutbacks from the key EU market, although more nuanced messages have been coming from some member states as Malaysia threatens retaliation, including a prolonged suspension of free trade talks with the bloc. China may continue to take more palm oil if its swine fever outbreak cuts crush for meal for a downsized hog industry, reducing soyabean oil output. Palm oil is cheap and plentiful and China views it less negatively than in Europe.

Sunflower oil looks to be in similar supply volume this year to last. Planting has been forecast down slightly this year in Russia and Ukraine, with yields similar to last year’s and maybe slightly better in Ukraine, but overall, another large regional crop of around 28M tonnes. EU plantings are meanwhile seen up slightly with initial pointers to a 9.7M tonne harvest, the same as last year’s. Global sunflower oil consumption is, meanwhile, expected to be up slightly next season, mainly in Russia and smaller importing nations, with EU demand holding steady.  John Buckley is OFI’s market corespondent OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019 17

19/07/2019 15:30:33

3-MCPDE & GE Tackling the formation of 3-MCPDEs and GEs in edible oils involves following good practices – during cultivation, harvest and transport of oil fruits and seeds, to refining and post-refining Serena Lim Edible oils are produced from various commodities – including fruits, seeds, nuts and fish – and their refining at 200°C or higher can produce carcinogenic 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol esters (3-MCPDEs) and glycidyl esters (GEs). Humans are exposed to 3-MCPDEs and GEs from consuming refined oils or food products containing refined oils, such as infant formula, dietary supplements, fried potato products and fine bakery wares. The occurrence of 3-MCPDEs and GEs in food oils was first reported in the mid-2000s and various regulations and recommendations have since been introduced, setting maximum limits for these process contaminants. The EU set maximum levels for GEs in February 2018 (see box, pg20), while the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) set a tolerable daily intake for 3-MCPDs in January 2018 of 2µg/kg body weight per day (0.002ppm/kg body weight). The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is also expected to adopt a new Code of Practice (CoP) in July on how to prevent and reduce 3-MCPDE and GE formation in refined oils and foods made with refined oils. The EFSA has found that palm oil and palm fats have the highest levels of 2-MCPD, 3-MCPD (including esters) and GEs among vegetable oils.

Formation factors

Most unrefined oils do not contain detectable levels of 3-MCPDE or GE but different types of unrefined oils have different capacities to form them during the deodorisation step of edible oil refining, according to the CAC draft CoP. The processing conditions during refining also have an important effect on the 3-MCPDE and GE formation. “For vegetable oils, factors that contribute to the capacity to form 3-MCPDE and GE during refining include climate, soil and growth conditions of source plants or trees, their genotype, and harvesting techniques. These factors all affect the levels of precursors of 18 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

MCPD and GE.indd 2

Mitigation stra 3-MCPDE and GE, such as acylglycerols and chlorine-containing compounds,” the draft CoP says. “3-MCPDE forms primarily from the reaction between chlorine containingcompounds and acylglycerols like triacylglycerols (TAGs), diacylglycerols (DAGs) and monoacylglycerols (MAGs). GE forms primarily from DAGs or MAGs.” Some chlorinated compounds are also precursors for 3-MCPDE formation. Oil-producing plants or trees absorb chloride ions (in the form of chlorinated compounds) during growth, from soil (including from fertilisers and pesticides) and from water. These chloride ions are converted into reactive chlorinated compounds, leading to the formation of 3-MCPDE during oil refining, the draft CoP says. Oil fruits and seeds contain the enzyme lipase. Lipase activity increases when fruit matures, while the lipase activity in seeds remains stable. Lipase interacts with oil from mature fruits to rapidly degrade TAGs into free fatty acids (FFAs), DAGs, and MAGs. The effect of lipase in seeds that are appropriately stored is negligible.

Mitigation strategies

Because 3-MCPDEs and GEs are formed via different mechanisms, varying mitigation strategies are needed to control their formation. “GE is generally easier to mitigate

than 3-MCPDE because its formation is directly associated with elevated temperatures, with formation beginning at about 200°C and becoming more significant at temperatures above 230°C,” the draft CoP says. GE is formed mainly from DAGs and does not require the presence of chlorinated compounds. Oils can be deodorised at temperatures below 230°C to avoid significant GE formation. However, it is not practical to decrease deodorisation temperatures below the threshold that would lead to 3-MCPDE formation (160-200°C), as that could affect the quality and safety of the oil. The CoP says that although 3-MCPDE and GE are primarily produced during deodorisation, mitigation measures can be applied across the edible oil production chain, from agricultural practices (such as cultivation, harvesting, transporting and storing of oil fruits and seeds), to oil milling and refining (crude oil production and treatment, degumming/bleaching and deodorisation), as well as to post-refining measures (additional bleaching and deodorisation and the use of activated bleaching earth). “Where possible, it may be best to remove precursors at the earlier stages of processing, to minimise the formation of 3-MCPDE and GE. “In concert with mitigation of 3-MCPDE and GE, it is also important to consider www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:28:13

3-MCPDE & GE temperatures, 180-270°C) to remove FFA, colours, and volatile compounds, including certain contaminants. Physical refining involves degumming, bleaching, and deodorisation (which occurs at higher temperatures than chemical refining), as it does not have a neutralisation step. While several factors influence the selection of physical refining, it is typically conducted on oils containing low levels of phospholipids.

Good agricultural practice

rategies the overall impacts on the quality of refined oils and oil-based products, including properties such as smell and taste, FFA profiles, stability attributes, levels of nutrients, and the removal of contaminants such as pesticides and mycotoxins.”

Recommended practices

Producing edible vegetable oils involves several major steps: cultivating, harvesting, transporting and storing the fruits and seeds for further processing; palm oil milling where fruit is sterilised and crude oil is extracted; oilseed crushing where oilseeds are cleaned, ground, steamed and crude oil is extracted; and refining of the crude oils. Producing edible fish oils involves harvesting the fish, steam cooking, dewatering/wet reduction (which involves pressing the liquor, separating the oil and water, and optionally, water washing the oil), and refining of the crude oils. There are two main types of edible oil refining. Chemical refining consists of degumming (removal of phospholipids); neutralisation (addition of hydroxide solution to remove FFAs through formation of soaps); bleaching (using clays) to reduce colours and remove remaining soaps and gums, trace metals, and degradation products; and deodorisation (a steam-distillation process carried out at low pressures, 1.5-6.0 mbar, and elevated www.ofimagazine.com

MCPD and GE.indd 3

The CoP says that when it comes to palm oil and planting new trees, farmers should consider selecting plant varieties with low lipase activity in oil fruits, as low lipase activity is one factor that can reduce formation of FFAs and acylglycerol precursors. “During cultivation of oil plants or trees, farmers should minimise the use of substances such as fertilisers, pesticides, and water that have excessive amounts of chlorine-containing compounds, in order to reduce chlorine uptake by the fruits and seeds. Non-chlorinated sulfate fertilisers could serve as an alternative to chlorine-containing fertilisers.” Farmers should also harvest oil palm fruits when they are at optimal ripeness, minimise handling of the fruits to reduce bruising and prevent formation of FFAs, and avoid using damaged or overripe fruits, which may be associated with higher 3-MCPDE and GE formation. Oil palm fruits should also be taken to oil mills as soon as possible.

Oil milling and refining

Crude oil production and treatment The draft CoP says processors should consider storing oilseeds for milling at cool temperatures (below 25°C) and dry conditions (optimally under 7% moisture content) to help ensure low levels of lipase. Once oil palm fruits are at the mill, processors should sterilise them immediately (preferably within less than two days of harvesting) at temperatures at or below 140°C to inactivate lipases (with temperatures varying depending on the sterilisation method). Fruits may be washed before sterilisation to remove chlorine precursors. For oilseeds, processors should clean, grind and heat to inactivate lipases. “Processors should consider washing crude vegetable oil with chlorine-free water to remove chlorine-containing compounds. They should avoid using residual vegetable oil recovered from solvents or additional extractions, as this oil tends to have higher levels of

precursors, such as DAGs and chlorinecontaining compounds.” Processors should also assess precursors in batches of crude vegetable oils or fish oils (such as DAGs, FFAs or chlorine-containing compounds) to adjust refining parameters and target appropriate mitigation strategies depending on the type of vegetable oil or fish oil being processed and processing conditions. “Preferentially refining crude vegetable oil or fish oil with low concentrations of precursors can produce finished oils with lower levels of 3-MCPDE and GE.” Degumming During the degumming stage, processors should use milder and less acidic conditions (either degumming with a low concentration of phosphoric, citric, or other acids or water degumming) to decrease 3-MCPDE in vegetable oils or fish oils. The concentration of acid depends on the quality of the crude vegetable oil or fish oil. Care should be taken to remove sufficient concentrations of phospholipids and acid to ensure quality. Lowering the degumming temperature may help to reduce formation of 3-MCPDE precursors in vegetable oils. However, the degumming temperature will depend on numerous factors including the type of vegetable oil. Neutralisation Using chemical refining (neutralisation) as an alternative to physical refining can help remove precursors (such as chloride) and reduce FFAs, which may allow for lower deodorisation temperatures in vegetable oils or fish oils. However, chemical refining can lead to excessive oil loss (especially for palm oil due to higher FFA levels) and may have a greater environmental impact than physical refining. Bleaching Using greater amounts of bleaching clay may reduce formation of 3-MCPDE and GE in all vegetable oils and fish oils. However, bleaching clays that contain significant amounts of chlorine-containing compounds should be avoided. The use of more pH-neutral clays reduces the acidity and potential to form 3-MCPDE in palm oil, some seed oils and fish oil. Deodorisation The draft CoP says processors should consider conducting deodorisation of vegetable oils and fish oils at reduced temperatures to decrease formation of GE. For example, it has been suggested OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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3-MCPDE & GE u that deodorisation should be conducted at 190-230°C for vegetable oils and less than 190°C for fish oils. The temperature will vary depending on the residence time of the oil. As an alternative to traditional deodorisation, processors can conduct dual deodorisation of vegetable oils and fish oils (2-stage deodorisation) to reduce the thermal load in oil and decrease formation of GE, with a smaller reduction in 3-MCPDE. This includes both a shorter deodorisation period at a higher temperature and a longer deodorisation period at a lower temperature. “Consideration needs to be given to parameters such as temperature, vacuum pressure, time and variations in equipment design and capability. Also, additional post-processing may be required to reduce levels of GE.” Use of a stronger vacuum can help

evaporate volatile compounds due to the increased steam volume and rate of stripping, contributing to decreased deodorisation temperatures and reduced formation of GE, and to a lesser extent 3-MCPDE, in vegetable and fish oils. Short-path distillation (in place of deodorisation) has been shown to reduce the thermal load and formation of esters in fish oil, contributing to lower amounts of 3-MCPDE and GE in comparison to conventional deodorisation. Short-path distillation enables gentle removal of volatile compounds at relatively low temperatures. This is accomplished through reduced pressure, where the boiling point of the compound to be separated is lowered and there is increased efficiency due to the short distance between the evaporator and the condenser surface. However, additional post-processing

EU considers 3-MCPDE provisions and GE changes The EU enacted Regulation (EU) 2018/290 on 26 February 2018 to set maximum limits for GEs in vegetable oils and fats, and products containing them, in Section 4: • 4.2.1 Vegetable oils and fats placed on the market for the final consumer (maximum 1,000µg/kg) • 4.2.2 Vegetable oils and fats for the production of baby food and processed cereal-based food for infants and young children (maximum 500µg/kg) • 4.2.3 Powder infant formula, follow-on formula and foods for special medical purposes (75µg/kg until 30 June 2019, then 50µg/kg from 1 July 2019) • 4.2.4 Liquid infant formula, follow-on formula and foods for special medical purposes (10µg/kg until 30 June 2019, then 6µg/kg from 1 July 2019) Additional GE provisions are currently under discussion in working groups with member state experts, according to Frans Verstraete of the European Commission Health and Consumers Directorate-General. They include adding fish oil and oils from other marine organisms to the scope of Sections 4.2.1 and 4.2.2 above; and adding young child formula to sections 4.2.2, 4.2.3 and 4.2.4. Also under discussion are maximum levels for 3-MCPD and 3-MCPDEs. There are two proposed levels for vegetable oils and fats and fish oils for the final consumer, or for use as food ingredients: • 1,250µg/kg for unrefined oils, refined oils and fats from coconut, maize, rapeseed, olives (except olive pomace oil) sunflower, soyabean and palm kernel and mixtures of oils and fats from this category only. • 2,500µg/kg for other refined vegetable oils (including live pomace oil), fish oil and oils of other marine organisms and mixtures of oils and fats from this category only. For mixtures of oils and fats from the two different categories, the oils and fats used as ingredients must comply with the maximum level set for each oil and fat. If the quantitative composition of the mixture is not known, then the sum of 3-MCPDs and 3-MCPDEs should not exceed 2,500µg/kg. • • •

For vegetable oils and fats destined for baby food and processed cereal-based food for infants and young children and young child formulas, a level of 750µg/kg is being considered. For infant formula, follow-on formula and foods for special medical purposes intended for infants and young children (powder) and young child formula, the level proposed in 125µg/kg. For infant formula, follow-on formula and foods for special medical purposes intended for infants and young children (liquid) and young child formula, the level proposed is 15µg/kg.

20 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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using mild deodorisation is needed to address sensory considerations after short-path distillation

Post-refining treatment

Additional bleaching and deodorisation following initial bleaching and deodorisation has been shown to achieve lower levels of GE in refined palm oil. (The second deodorisation should occur at a lower temperature than the first deodorisation.) Application of activated bleaching earth during post-refining has been shown to reduce GE in refined vegetable oils. Use of short-path distillation (at <1mbar pressure and 120-270°C temperature) on bleached and deodorised vegetable oil can reduce acylglycerol components and levels of 3-MCPDE and GE. Treatment of refined medium chain triacylglycerol (MCT) oil with fatty acids and a cation counterion, such as an alkali metal, as well as one or more bases, converts 3-MCPDE to MAGs, DAGs and TAGs, and GEs to DAGs.

Food products

Oil selection Selecting refined vegetable oils and fish oils with low levels of 3-MCPDE and GE (either through natural occurrence or through application of mitigation measures) results in lower levels of 3-MCPDE and GE in finished products containing these oils. For example, variation in levels of 3-MCPDE and GE in infant formula has been observed and selection of oils low in 3-MCPDE and GE can result in infant formulas with lower 3-MCPDE and GE levels. However, manufacturers also may have to consider quality or compositional factors. For example, for infant formula, refined oils are selected by manufacturers to ensure these products meet compositional criteria. Processing modifications Reducing the amount of refined vegetable oils and fish oils used in finished products may be an alternative to reduce the levels of 3-MCPDE and GE in the finished product. However, this could impact the organoleptic or nutritional qualities of the finished products. Use of refined vegetable oils themselves during frying does not contribute to formation of additional 3-MCPDE and GE, but the formation of additional 3-MCPDE during frying may result from the type of food that is fried, such as meat and fish products.  Serena Lim is the editor of OFI www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:28:14

RAPESEED

Tackling pests and climate change Global rapeseed production today stands at some 70M tonnes, with the crop enjoying a price premium above other oil crops. However, pest and disease control and climate change are some of the challenges facing producers Serena Lim

he yellow fields of rapeseed across Europe and major global producer Canada are an iconic sight but could genetically modified red rapeseed, smelling of lavender, be seen in the future? This was a tongue in cheek comment made by Samantha Cook of the UK’s Rothamsted Research at the 15th International Rapeseed Congress (IRC) in Berlin held on 17-19 June. Cook, who is a behavioural ecologist, was talking about how pollen beetles – one of the major pests attacking rapeseed – were attracted to yellow and fluorescent green and blue colours. If canola was modified to be red, it would attract less pests. Lavender was also the most repellent

smell for pollen beetles. In a trial, canola plants sprayed with its scent attracted far less pests than canola is a control field, although that would be an expensive solution to the pest problem. Pest and disease control is one of the major issues facing rapeseed producers today, the congress – which attracted 850 delegates from 43 countries, was told. “Today, oilseed rape/canola is one of the major sources of edible oil in the world,” said Wolfgang Friedt, president of the congress organiser, International Consultative Group of Research on Rapeseed (GCIRC). “The total rapeseed acreage amounts to nearly 34M ha, from which almost 70M tonnes of rapeseed are produced every year.” (see Figure 1, p24) However, rapeseed cultivation was confronted with major challenges worldwide including control of diseases and pests; adverse climate conditions such as dryness and heat; and new breeding techniques which faced political opposition in Europe. Hubertus Paetow, president of the German Agriculture Society, said Germany’s total rapeseed acreage of 880,000ha had

Rapeseed/canola: producers and neonicotinoids Canola and rapeseed belong to the cabbage or mustard family. Canola was registered in 1979 in Canada and refers to a variety of rapeseed bred through traditional plant cross-breeding to remove glucosinolates and erucic acids, considered inedible or toxic in high levels. Canola has less than 30 micromoles of glucosinolates and less than 2% erucic acid. The leading global producers of rapeseed/canola and their approximate production are: Canada (21M tonnes); the EU (19M tonnes); China (13M tonnes) and India (6.6M tonnes), Australia (3.4M tonnes) and the Ukraine (see Figure 1, p24) In 2013, the EU severely restricted three kinds of neonicotinioid pesticides (clothianidin, thametoxam and imidacloprid) on bee-attractive crops including maize, oilseed rape and sunﬂower, to protect honeybees. The ban was widened to all outdoor use in May 2018. 22 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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reached a historic low and average yields had fallen in the last five years. “The reasons are complex. A major factor has been density of cultivation, which has encouraged pests and diseases such as clubroot. The EU’s ban of neonicotinoid weedkillers has reduced options to combat insects”. There was resistance to alternative pyrethroid insecticides and stricter crop protection regulations were likely to come into force in the rest of world. “New active ingredients must be developed but there are fears that the efforts required to develop new chemicals may become too burdensome for developers.”

Pest and disease

Andreas von Tiedemann of Germany’s University of Göttingen told the congress that pests and diseases were the key constraint on the productivity of rapeseed. “We have seen declining yield trends in Europe and Australia since 1995 in spite of continuous genetic improvements (see Figure 2, p24). This is partly explained by the diverse prevalence of pests and diseases in the four global cropping regions for rapeseed.” Chemical control was a key factor in control but compromised in Europe by the neonicotinoid ban and developing resistance to insecticides. The university conducted a global survey of pests and diseases in the EU, Australia, Canada, China and India and identified 16 diseases and 31 insect pests, plus slugs and nematodes, affecting rapeseed. “This is quite a remarkable list for a relatively young crop.” Five diseases and nine pests were identified in the seedling stage; 12 diseases www.ofimagazine.com

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RAPESEED agement (IPM) approach. This included setting an action threshold when an acceptable level of pest and disease was exceeded, and monitoring plants. Prevention methods included using crop rotation, pest resistant cultivars, pheromone repellents and intercropping. Control methods included biological control such as planting crops to attract pests away from rapeseed, the use of natural enemies such as spiders, and the use of pesticides, when necessary.

Climate challenges

John Kierkegaard from Australia’s Commonwealth and Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), described

the agronomic challenges in adapting canola into the world’s cropping systems. Rapeseed was a valuable break crop when planted with wheat. It broke soilborne wheat pathogens and helped control weeds, with wheat seeing a 0.8 tonne/ha yield advantage as a result, he said. Kierkegaard said Australia grew canola on 2.5M ha of land, with a yield of 1.4 tonnes/ha. It produced some 3.4M tonnes of rapeseed, exporting 80% of its crop as the number two global rapeseed exporter. He said canola was first grown in medium rainfall areas with less heat. However, Australian farmers were planting canola in dryer areas more dominated by cereal production, with less u

and 16 pests were identified in the stem elongation to flowering stage; and three diseases and four pests were identified in the mature stage. In Europe, the most affected region in terms of pests, 16 insects were identified including the cabbage stem flea beetle, pollen beetle, cabbage seed weevil, cabbage stem weevil, rapeseed stem weevil and brassica pod midge. Major diseases included clubroot, sclerotinia, blackleg, verticillium and light leaf spot. Chemical control and crop rotation were the main tools used to combat pest and disease. With fungal diseases, there were 16 active chemical ingredients available today, and pathogens were bound to the field, making crop rotation more effective. “However, we are in a critical situation in terms of insect control.” Insecticide resistance was growing, particularly in flea beetles, pollen beetles and aphids. Crop rotation was also a blunt sword against migrating insects, depending on their life cycle and mobility. Flea and pollen beetles, the rape stem weevil, brassica pod midge and aphids were not field-bound and could move across more than 10km, to a neighbouring farm or in natural habitats. “The only way to manage migrating insects is to think on a landscape level.” Crop rotation needed to be synchronised on regional scale, defined by natural boundaries such as forests and mountains, with break years, he said. Cook described how 5% of the UK rapeseed crop was lost when the EU neonicotinioid ban came into force in 2013, and how there had been a 12% reduction in UK oilseed rape since. She advocated an integrated pest manwww.ofimagazine.com

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RAPESEED u than 325mm of rain, as a break crop for cereals. “You have to rethink agronomy when you move to dryer areas,” he said. In the last five years, Australia had moved to earlier sowing systems because of climate drivers. Autumn sowing rains in May were declining. Frosts in August were more variable and unpredictable. And spring weather when canola flowered was getting hotter. Kierkegaard said earlier sown crops could cover the ground, reduce evaporation and had deeper roots to access moisture. Experiments were carried out between 2014-2019 and, overall, risks were reduced moving to earlier sowing. Early sowing was carried out at the start of April, compared with the old system of late April/early May, and had resulted in a yield increase of around 1 tonne/ha, with about half of leading farms in Australia already moving in this direction. Kierkegaard said strategic tilling was also used in parts of Western Australia. “Australia is the biggest adopter of no till farming” but faced multiple issues including a water repellent topsoil, herbicide resistant weeds, compact soil and an acid subsurface leading to poor canola establishment. “Once the soil is disturbed, it can support much better crops,” Kierkegaard said. In Australia’s wetter areas with rainfall above 550mm and long seasons, famers used European winter canola to provide several months of grazing for sheep and cattle on the farm. Early sowing increased the number of grazing days, with good grazing management taking animals off the yield at the right time to prevent yield loss. “Grazed canola is one of most profitable things farmers can do in Australia.” Moving to other parts of the world,

Source: Canola Council of Canada

25,000

Source: Canola Council of Canada

Figure 1: International canola/rapeseed production (‘000 tonnes)

Results – Comparison to Other Meals

24 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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● Compositional variation occurs in all meals due to variety, seasonal and location affect on growth and processing differences Crude Protein

60 50

ADF

61.01

51.19

53.81

41.25

40 30 20 10 0

16.7 10

Low Protein Soybean Meal

14.0 4.8

4.6

High Conventional Dehulled High Protein Dehulled High (Dehulled) Canola Conventional Canola Meal Protein Canola Protein Canola Meal Soybean Meal

Figure 4: Canola meal versus soyabean meal

Source: Canola Council of Canada

Figure 3: What’s in a canola seed?

● Dehulled, high protein canola meal can achieve higher protein and lower ADF than soybean meal

Weight Percent on an oil-free, dry basis

30% no value

Source: Canola Council of Canada

Figure 2: International canola/rapeseed yield (tonnes/hectare)

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RAPESEED Australia’s phenology suited the growing of rapeseed in the lower latitudes of South America very well, Kierkegaard said. In Brazil, rapeseed was grown on 348,710ha of land but a potential 10.8M ha was available for cultivation. Areas in Brazil suitable to grow canola had 1,000-2,000mm of rainfall. “The agronomic challenges in Brazil are the opposite to Australia, with high rainfall and more disease; frost at higher altitudes; and nitrogen loss due to high rainfall. Brazil grew soyabean and maize in the summer months. In the cool season, a second maize crop could be grown but it was more sensitive to frost than canola. In that context, fitting in canola in a short growing window, with a short cycle and blackleg resistance, had potential.

Production costs

Yelto Zimmer of Argi Benchmark compared rapeseed with other oil crops, saying that rapeseed traded at a premium of about US$50/tonne over other oils. The application of nitrogen fertiliser was a key economic cost in rapeseed production, and was also a relevant factor in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, he said. Australians applied about 50kg/ha of

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nitrogen, compared with 230kg/ha among German, Danish, French and UK farmers. Other major production costs included seeds, other fertilisers and crop care chemicals. This totalled around US$600/ha in the EU, US$200-250 in Australia, with Canada and Ukraine in between the two.

Canola protein

Curtis Rempel, vice president, crop production and innovation, at the Canola Council of Canada, talked about increasing the value of canola meal, describing how a canola seed comprised 43% oil, 22% protein and 30% of substances with no value (see Figure 3, previous page). To increase the value of canola, a breeder had to increase its protein content and quality; decrease anti-nutritional compounds such as myrosinase, phytate and glucosinolates; and maintain or increase its oil content. Literature and discussion with breeders indicated that it was possible to boost oil content to 48-50% seed oil and 27% seed protein without a yield drag, but an increase in nitrogen fertiliser was needed to achieve this. In terms of protein content, canola meal competed with soyabean meal, selling for

about 60% of soya’s price and with 75% of the protein content of soyabean meal. Rempel said the animal feed protein market was growing at 3.3% CAGR. World poultry demand was increasing, requiring higher protein in feed, and the 2.5M tonnes aquaculture market was valued at US$3bn, with fish meal supply declining. Front-end dehulling could be used to mitigate seasonal and location variability in canola protein content. Using this in combination with a high protein seed could open access to previously unobtainable markets, such as aquaculture. Dehulled, high protein canola meal could achieve higher protein and lower levels of difficult-to-digest acid detergent fibre (ADF) than soyabean meal, he said (see Figure 4, previous page). New product streams such as the use of canola proteins in food and biodegradable biocomposites for food packaging use could also add to canola’s value. “New commercial product streams translate to $US1,500-$12,000 tonne of product value versus US$340-$500/tonne from current conventional processing.” ● The 16th International Rapeseed Congress will be held in Sydney, Australia on 24-27 September 2023

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17/07/2019 11:25:22

PLANT & TECHNOLOGY

Global round-up of projects

IN BRIEF USA/UK: US Biotechnology firm Trucent and British chemicals company Croda International have announced a partnership to manufacture and distribute an emulsion breaker chemistry to improve distiller’s corn oil (DCO) recovery within ethanol plants, called Ascent. Ascent was a chemical process with the ability to break the emulsions that had previously prevented corn ethanol producers from capturing the maximum amount of oil, the companies said on 10 June. Technical product development experts at the companies started work on Ascent in autumn 2018. The two companies worked with Croda’s existing patented and bio-based ingredients to develop the emulsion breaker. Croda was able to use Trucent’s experience and data in corn oil extraction to modify the design of the chemistry to break the dry grind ethanol corn syrup emulsion. This would allow the extraction of more DCO for less money. With successful trials now completed, Trucent was ready to bring this chemistry to market. 2 OFI 26 OFI––MONTH JULY/AUGUST 2018 2019

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Ind Hemp selects Rosedowns to supply equipment for mill US hemp processor Ind Hemp has selected pressing firm Rosedowns as its equipment supplier for its hemp seed mill in Montana. Leading engineering firm to the oils and fats industry Desmet Ballestra said on 6 June that the decision followed successful trials at the pilot plant at Stolz, Wailly-Beaucamp, France. The plant was designed to process up to 12 tonnes/day of hemp seed by cold pressing, producing a premium oil for food, nutraceutical, and cosmetic uses. In March, Desmet Ballestra also started up

Source: Renova

Oils & Fats International reports on some of the latest projects, technology and process news and developments around the world

a new 10,000 tonnes/day extraction plant for Renova, a joint venture set up by Oleaginosa Moreno Hermanos (owned by Swiss-British commodity trading and mining firm Glencore) and biofuel producer Vicentin, in Argentina. This was a repeat order from Renova for a second extraction plant with a high capacity Reflex Extractor. Renova’s crushing facility is located in Timbúes, Santa Fé Province (pictured left). De Smet also reported the start-up of a new complete Rosedowns pre-pressing and extraction plant in Egypt for Alexandria Co for Seed Processing and Derivatives (AlexSeeds). The new plant capacity was 3,000 tonnes/ day of soyabeans and 1,500 tonnes/day of sunflower, Desmet Ballestra said on 1 March. AlexSeeds was one of the largest facilities in Egypt and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in terms of oilseed production. ▪ Bangladeshi consumer goods manufacturer conglomerate City Group reported the startup of its second Desmet Ballestra crushing plant of 5,000 tonnes/day of soyabean on 15 April.

Technology converts liquid palm oil waste into DHA Indonesia’s economic minister Darmin Nasution has welcomed the adoption of Japanese technology which can convert liquid palm oil waste into valuable products such as docasahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid, and animal feed. The Jakarta Post reported on 27 May that Darmin said the adoption of the technology was important for Indonesia because it could attract investment, boost exports, address environmental issues and improve economic activity.

The technology was developed by Japan’s Mobiol Corporation and Tsukuba University. The newspaper wrote that there were 875 palm oil producing firms in Indonesia that produced some 156M tonnes/day of the liquid called palm oil mill effluent. Mobiol CEO Toshihide Nakajima said the global demand for DHA was around 250,000 tonnes/year, while demand for animal and aquatic feed was about 1M and 4M tonnes/year respectively.

Avril group buys Sterling 900 Series pre-press French agro-industrial group Avril has selected the Sterling 900 Series pre-press for its Expur plant in Slobozia, Romania. The machine would handle the 850 tonnes/ day intake of sunflower seed and replace a number of older machines at the plant. Demset Ballestra said it was the world’s largest capacity pre-press and Avril’s unit would be the first manufactured by Rosedowns. It could also process up to 930 tonnes/day of rapeseed.

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17/07/2019 12:20:33

PLANT & TECHNOLOGY

www.dsengineers.com

Argentina olive oil plant to be largest in South America Agricultural firm Solfrut has teamed up with the Argentinian San Juan province government to invest US$14M into upgrading its existing olive oil production plant, which would become the largest in South America when completed. The renovated plant would have a state-of-the-art mill and see its storage capacity increase to 4,000 tonnes, Olive Oil Times wrote on 29 May. It would be responsible for bottling 30% of olive oil consumed in Argentina as well as olive oil destined for Brazil. The project – which was divided into three phases – would be completed by 2021. The first phase was due for completion in June, when the plant’s storage capacity would be increased to 2,000 tonnes. At the end of the process, even larger tanks would be installed, Olive Oil Times reported. The second phase included renovating the mill to modernise the equipment, which was expected to be completed by the harvest season in 2020. The third phase would involve modernising and enlarging the bottling section of the plant. Solfrut said it expected the plant workforce to increase 15% once the expansion was complete. The plant currently employed 200 people.

Serving the Vegetable Oil Industry From Basic Engineering to Full Turnkey Project Single Point Responsibility through EPC or EPCM+® with guaranteed: ✔ Process Performances

Universal Biofuels wins biodiesel supply contract worth over $23M Indian Aemetis’ subsidary Universal Biofuels has been awarded a biodiesel supply contract with three India government-owned oil marketing companies in a public tender process. The contract provided for ongoing deliveries of biodiesel to various blending locations in an agregate amount of more than US$23M during 2019, Biofuels Digest reported on 6 May. India’s diesel market totalled about 114bn litres, 80% of www.ofimagazine.com

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which was imported. Less than 114M litres/year of biodiesel was currently blended Biofuels Digest wrote. The 2018 National Biofuels Policy aimed to increase biodiesel blending to 5% of the diesel market, equal to more than 5.5bn litres/year. Indian oil marketing companies supplied about 70% of fuel consumed in the country. In addition, the diesel fuel market had been growing at a rate of more than 5%/year, Biofuels Digest said. OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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TRANSPORT, STORAGE & LOGISTICS Iran sits strategically on the crossroads of the Middle East and central and southern Asia. Like many other countries in the Middle East region, it must import the majority of its edible oil needs, mostly through its southern ports Sunder Singh Located on the crossroads of Central and southern Asia, and the Arab states of the Middle East, Iran holds a strategic position in world trade, with ports located on the Caspian Sea, Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman coastlines. With a population of 80M, Iran is the second largest country in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Like many other countries in the Middle East which only have low domestic prodution of oilseeds, Iran must import a significant part of its total edible oil consumption. The country has emerged as one of the largest edible oil markets in MENA. Unlike other petroleum oil-rich nations in the area, Iran has a diversified economy with a substantial scope for investments in sectors like food and beverages, and manufacturing, which drives demand for edible oil. Iran’s demographics are another major advantage: 60% of its population are under 30 years old. The Iranian edible oil processing and importing industry is dominated by a few major players including Cargill Palm Products Sdn Bhd, Eghtsad-Andish, Golbarg Baharan, Jahan Vegetablle oil Company, Kala Gostaran Sabz Andish Co Ltd, Margarine Manufacturing Co. Ltd, Middle East Gold Star Co, Savola Behshar Company, Pars Vegetable Oil Co.

Major importer

According to the Secretary of the Iranian Vegetable Oil Industry Association, Amir-Houshang Birashk, “Annual demand for edible oil in the country is approximately 1.98M tonnes. Nearly 90% of the country’s demand is met through imports, while 10% is provided from the production of domestic oilseeds. “The edible oil production volume in the country during the eight-month period of 21 March 2018-21 November 2018 recorded a 10% growth as compared to the 28 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

iran.indd 1

Caspian Sea Anzali Port

Amirabad Port

Noshahr Port

Imam Khomeini Port

Pe rs

ian

Shahid Rajaee Port

Gu lf Gulf of Oman

Iran: on the Middle East-Asia crossroad corresponding period in 2017.” Iran imported 566,618 tonnes of palm oil products worth more than US$381M from Malaysia in 2018. When compared to 2017 import figures, palm oil imports declined by 6.8% and 23.6% in volume and value respectively. The imports included 487,923 tonnes of palm oil valued at US$289M, 19,066 tonnes of palm kernel oil worth US$26M, 38,666 tonnes of oleochemicals worth US$43M and 20,961 tonnes of other palm-oil-derived products worth US$22M, according to the data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board’s Central Asia regional office. Iran was Malaysia’s eighth biggest export destination for palm oil products in 2018. The UAE was once the highest importer of Malaysian and Indonesian palm oil in the Middle East, according to the Malaysian Palm Oil Council. Traders used to bring palm oil to the UAE and store it there for two weeks. Now many of them have started shipping directly from Malaysia to Iran, avoiding the high freight rates and leakage of oil during transshipment. A major reason prompting Iranian traders to change the shipping pattern was to “control palm oil quality” and avoid adulteration. During the two-week storage period, after a shipment from Malaysia, a certain quantity of the oil would be lost due to spillage during re-shipment. The storage would also affect its quality.

Iran is also a significant importer of sunflower oil, most of which originates from Russia and Ukraine, while a small amount is imported from China. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), between October 2017 to September 2018, Iran imported 381,000 tonnes of sunflower oil, a large drop of 35.8% from the previous year’s figure of 593,000 tonnes. During September 2018 to February 2019, Iran imported 245,000 tonnes of sunflower oil from Russia. Iran increased its purchases by almost 2.5 times, compared with the same period last season (97,000 tonnes). The increase in imports made Iran the largest buyer of Russian sunflower oil during this period, compared with the same time in 2017/18, when it was the fourth largest buyer. Between September 2018 and February 2019, Iran imported 59,000 tonnes of sunflower oil from the largest global producer Ukraine, a decline of 5,000 tonnes from a year earlier.

Palm oil import restrictions

A public outcry over “excessive” imports of palm oil during President Hassan Rouhani’s first term led to an agreement among private associations, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture to reduce the share of palm oil in total oil imports. In 2014, after the national debate on u www.ofimagazine.com

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For registration: pipoc@mpob.gov.my pipoc.mpob.gov.my

TRANSPORT, STORAGE & LOGISTICS u the negative health effects of palm oil, dairy producers were strictly warned not to use it in milk and yogurt. This prompted the government to impose restrictions on palm oil imports. Under these restrictions, total palm oil imports must not exceed 30% of the total imports of oils and fats. As a result, Iran’s palm oil purchases dropped by from 997,000 tonnes in 2013 to 330,970 tonnes in 2015. In March 2016, the restriction was removed but replaced with a higher import tax of 40%. Comparatively, other vegetable oils are taxed at 24%.

Economic sanctions and impact

The US sanctions on Iran that Washington reimposed in November after President Donald Trump pulled the USA out of the landmark nuclear deal (made between Iran and six leading countries), has taken a toll on edible oil imports, severely curtailing Iran’s banking system which is required to pay for imported goods. Consequently, Malaysian palm oil exporters to Iran only recorded 1,325 tonnes in January 2019 against 60,075 tonnes in January 2018. However, the USA has granted waivers, known as significant reduction exceptions (SRE), which has allowed India and seven other countries to continue importing a reduced quantity of Iranian oil for six months ending 1 May 2019. The impact of US sanctions is evident from the trade figures at major Iranian ports in the 2018/19 Iranian financial year. In this time, 129.6M tonnes of goods were loaded and unloaded at all the ports, registering a 17% decline compared to the same period a year ago.

Major edible oil importing ports

Iran has a coastline of about 2,700km, 700km of which is on the Caspian Sea and 2,000km on the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. Currently, the country has 11 commercial ports in these areas, three in the north and eight in the south. However, in terms of edible oil transit, five ports account for the majority of trade.

coast on the Persian Gulf, the port is located 23km west of the port city of Bandar Abbas. Shahid Rajaee Port is Iran’s biggest container port at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz. Over half of Iran’s commercial trading is carried out in Shahid Rajaee. The Economic Zone, which has a loading/unloading capacity of 100M tonnes, accounts for over 55% of Iran’s trade and 70% of transit. With 18 gantry cranes and 40 berths, it is Iran’s most advanced container port, where 12,000 TEUs-plus Panamax cargo ships can enter. Launched in 1985, the significance of this port lies witinin its large capacity, container terminal, fuel bunkering, access to 24km of railroads, round-the-clock truck transportation and location on the Persian Gulf. Iran’s Customs Administration announced in September 2018 that procedures and formalities required for the customs clearance of imported vegetable oil are now carried out in less than 24 hours after arrival at Shahid Rajaee Port.

Imam Khomeini Port

Established in 1927, Imam Khomeini Special Economic Zone Port is the country’s second largest commercial port. It is spread over an area of 11,000ha in the northwest of the Persian Gulf. With a total warehouse area of 522,000m2, the port has an annual capacity of 54.5M tonnes. Located 80km from the centre of Khuzestan province, Imam Khomeini plays an important role in unloading edible oils for the country. The large port complex, located at the northernmost point of the Persian Gulf, is connected to the rail and road routes of the central and southwestern part of the country and serves as the gateway to edible oil trade for the provinces located in this region. One of the largest investments in the Iranian edible oils industry came in the vicinity of Imam Khomeini port. The

company, Navid Khaleej Fars oil extraction (NKF), officially inaugurated its production facility in 2017 with a total investment of US$136M. The plant has been implemented in line with the principles of the “resistance economy” outlined by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and is part of the sixth Five-Year Development Plan.

Capsian sea ports

Iran operates three commercial ports on the Caspian sea shores - Amirabad, Anzali and Noshahr. Edible oil imports from Russia and Ukraine comes through all three of these ports but mostly through Amirabad. In addition to the existing edible oil storage facility, construction of an 10,000 tonnes edible oil storage tank at Anzali port and 6,000 tonnes at Noshahr port is underway.

Amirabad Port

Amirabad is currently the largest port facility on the Caspian shore and the third largest port in Iran. Located in Mazandaran province, the 1,000ha port currently has nine berths, which can accommodate trains, trucks and roll on/ roll off vessels. In a visit to Amirabad in April 2018, the Iranian President inaugurated the second development phase of the port, consisting of six new berths with 4M tonnes capacity, as well as new facilities such as the construction of edible oil tanks with 10,000 tonnes capacity. Plans are underway to expand grain handling facilities to boost its capacity from 7.5M tonnes to 18M tonnes by 2030. To achieve this, the grain silo capacity will be expanded from 170,000 tonnes to 500,000 tonnes. About US$237M worth of investments have been made in the development projects of Amirabad Port since President Hassan Rouhani first took office in August 2013.  Sunder Singh is a freelance journalist

Southern ports

Most of the palm and soyabean oil trade in Iran takes place through the ports based in south. Sahid Rajajee and Imam Khomeini Ports account for the bulk of trade in these edible oils.

Special Economic Zone port

The Shahid Rajaee Special Economic Zone port (also known as Bandar-Abbas port) is the main sea port in Iran in terms of the volume of entry and the transshipment of shipping containers. Situated in Hormozgan province on Iran’s southern 30 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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The Strait of Hormuz provides the only sea passage to the ocean from the Persian Gulf www.ofimagazine.com

17/07/2019 11:28:54

NEWS SHOW PREVIEW

Thousands to visit PIPOC 2019 Malaysia’s Prime Minister will be officiating the biennial PIPOC Palm Oil Congress and Exhibition at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre from 19-21 November The biennial Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) International Palm Oil Congress and Exhibition (PIPOC) will once again be held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) on 19-21 November 2019. This year, Prime Minister YAB Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will be officiating the congress, which is set to attract thousands of delegates and visitors. PIPOC will feature five concurrent conferences, a trade exhibition, technical tours and a congress dinner. “PIPOC 2019 caters for those involved in the oil palm, palm oil and other oils and fats industry including R&D personnel, scientists, planters, millers, traders, processors, manufacturers, economists, policy makers and academicians,” says the MPOB. “The congress will be especially useful for networking with peers in the oils and fats industry while exchanging views and sharing new ideas.” The MPOB says the aims of PIPOC 2019 are to discuss strategic R&D findings in all aspects of the oil palm and palm oil industry; to adopt recent technological findings that will improve the palm oil industry; and to formulate strategies towards enhanced 2 OFI 32 OFI––MONTH JULY/AUGUST 2018 2019

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sustainability, competitiveness, automation and policies on trade, market trends and trade challenges.

Parallel conferences

The five concurrent conferences will focus on: Agriculture, Biotechnology & Sustainability Session 1: Agriculture Session 2: Biotechnology Session 3: Sustainability Chemistry, Processing Technology & Bioenery Session 1: Milling, Processing and Refining Technology Session 2: Science and Emerging Technology, Analytical and Quality Session 3: Biomass and Bioenergy Session 4: Biofuels Session 5: Environmental and Sustainability Oleo & Speciality Chemicals Session 1: Sustainable Oleochemical Development Session 2: Greener Processes and Materials Session 3: Oleochemicals for Sustainable Consumer Products Session 4: Cutting Edge Technology for Sustainable Development Session 5: Forum – Balancing Sustainability Pillars for Palm Oleochemicals Food, Health & Nutrition Session 1: Food and Feed Innovation Session 2: Food Safety and Quality Session 3: Nutrition and Metabolism Session 4: Clinical and Translational Evidence Session 5: Forum – Nutrition and Lifestyle: Are We Ready for the Aging Society

Global Economics & Marketing Session 1: Enhancing Sustainable Social Standard Session 2: Sustainable Palm Oil for Preserving the Planet Session 3: Sustaining Palm Oil Economic Competitiveness Session 4: Enhancing Sustainable Global Parntership

Technical tours

On Monday 18 November, technical tours to selected destinations will be arranged for delegates to experience and gain new knowledge in various aspects of the palm oil industry in Malaysia. There are five tour options to visit a plantation and mill; biogas plant; MPOB research station; a smallholder plantation; and an oleochemicals operation.

KLCC – ‘city within a city’

Situated at the heart of Kuala Lumpur’s central business district, the KLCC is the city’s most technologically advanced, purpose-built facility for international, regional and local conventions, trade shows, public exhibitions, entertainment and private functions. Designed as a ‘city within a city’, the KLCC offers a stimulating environment to work, live, shop, visit and enjoy life. Other components include a 25ha park, the signature Petronas Twin Towers, the Asy’Syakirin Mosque, the sixstorey Suria KLCC shopping centre, the Petrosains interactive science discovery centre.

Contact

Malaysian Palm Oil Board Tel: +603 87694415 E-mail: pipoc@mpob.gov.my Website: pipoc.mpob.gov.my

OFI is the official publication of PIPOC 2019 www.ofimagazine.com www.ofimagazine.com

15/07/2019 16:36:10

RENEWABLE RESOURCES

Path to sustainable packaging

With governments and producers looking for more sustainable alternatives to single-use plastics, can the oilseed industry provide the solution with new, innovative technology? Gabriel Day By 2050, there will be more plastic in the sea than fish, according to United Nations (UN). Figures from its environmental campaign Clean Seas showed that 300M tonnes of plastic was produced in 2014, and this figure will rise to 33bn tonnes in 2050. More than a third of food sold in the EU comes in plastic packaging with estimates that by 2020, Europe will consume more than 900bn items of packaged food annually, just-food reported in January. These daunting statistics bring about the question of what can be done to prevent the environment being damaged beyond repair. The food, packaging and chemicals industries have been driven to look towards more sustainable solutions, presenting opportunities for the oilseed industry to manufacture bioplastics. www.ofimagazine.com

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According to Research and Markets consultancy, the global market for bioplastics will be worth US$43bn by 2022, compared to US$17bn in 2017.

Action being taken

In February 2017, the UN Environment Programme announced the launch of its Clean Seas campaign to address and tackle the environmental dangers of single-use plastics. The campaign currently lists 60 countries as ‘Clean Seas Countries’. Figures from the UN also show that 8M tonnes of plastic leaks into the ocean each year, making up 80% of marine litter and costing at least US$8bn in damage to ocean ecosystems. In efforts to remedy the situation, the European Parliament approved the ban of single-use plastics in March, which is set to take effect within two years, the Guardian newspaper wrote. Additionally, by 2025, plastic bottles in EU member states must be made of 25% recyclable content and by 2029, this figure must be 90%. A January 2018 report from the European Commission (EC) said stakeholders in the industry regard oxo-plastics as the solution to the problem.

Oxo-plastic as a solution?

The EC report addresses the use of oxodegradable plastics which are “plastics

which include additives to accelerate the fragmentation of the material into very small pieces, triggered by UV radiation or heat exposure.” However, the issue with oxo-plastic is that it ultimately fragments into microplastics that mimic the properties of conventional plastics. Furthermore, oxo-plastics need to be exposed to oxygen to fragment, which would be unlikely at the bottom of a landfill or in the ocean (where it would also lack exposure to the necessary bacteria). Selling and marketing oxo-plastics with misleading claims could also change consumer littering habits and the accelerated fragmentation would reduce the likelihood of their recovery during litter clean-up exercises. In addition, oxo-plastics are more easily transported by wind or water. Overall, the report concluded that there was not enough evidence to suggest that oxo-plastic would sufficiently biodegrade on landfills or in marine environments in a reasonable time frame. The EC wrote that a process to restrict the use of oxo-plastics in the EU would be started.

Soya-based alternatives

Oils and Fats International spoke with technical consultant for the United Soybean Board (USB), Dwight Rust, to ask about the role soyabeans can play in the renewable plastics industry. u OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019 33

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RENEWABLE RESOURCES u

USB is a governing body made up of 73 volunteer farming directors who oversee the investments of the soyabean checkoff on behalf of all US soyabean farmers. “This is an area of significant opportunity for soya due to its functionality and use as a more sustainable element in manufacturing.” Rust said. “USB has funded projects in the packaging market from around 2008. It has included several areas such as the use of the solid soyabean component (hulls, meal, protein, byproducts of concentrating protein) as a filler to decrease the usage of thermoplastics and the development of soya waxes for cardboard and paper coatings to replace paraffin in applications like produce boxes and paper used for fast food. “Organisations that have been funded in this area for packaging include US Army-Natick, Clemson University, Biobent Polymers and Iowa State University,” he said. Rust added that “commercialisation of these funded projects has been slow, as it is difficult to replace cost effective and entrenched technologies such as polyolefin plastics and paraffin waxes”. “However, we do see applications where soya technologies will provide a technical and commercial benefit such as recycling of wax-coated cardboard, which is a significant problem currently. Soya can be part of a solution to finding more sustainable and environmentally-friendly components for manufacturing.” Soya polyols are used to make adhesives, toner, sealants, newspaper ink, automobile panels and urethane foam, said an April 2017 report from Sciencing. In addressing polyurethane packaging foam, agricultural firm Cargill has its renewable BiOH polyols for foam and carpet cushion ingredients, which are traditionally made from petroleum-based chemicals. Since it is soya-based, BiOH technology allows the company’s customers to create foam products with typical levels of renewable content from 5% to 20% - for every 453 tonnes of BiOH polyols used, over 2,050 barrels of crude oil are saved, according to Cargill Soya-based ink can also play a role in sustainable packaging as well. According to printing firm Print Wand, the benefits of soya ink are its ability to produce sharper, brighter images, while being cost effective and sustainable. Soya-based ink is also notable for its low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), Print Wand wrote. “VOCs are pollutants which evaporate in sunlight, and are unhealthy for both the 34 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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‘Renewable plastics is an area of significant opportunity for soya due to its functionality and use as a more sustainable element in manufacturing’ environment and human beings. Using soya ink ultimately produces less air pollution and health hazards,” the company said. Additionally, its VOC levels are less than a fifth of that produced by petroleum-based inks. It is to be used in German pharmaceutics company Bayer’s foot care brand Dr Scholl’s, which announced in April that it would be rethinking its packaging and investing in creating environmentally lower-impact shoes. The brand said it would be “introducing the most sustainable box ever made with recyclable materials and soya-based inks”. The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Sustainable Plastics: Designing and Demonstrating Renewable, Biodegradable Products Made of Soy Protein-Based Plastics report from 2008 also found that soya protein plastics have flow properties that are comparable to fossil fuel-based plastics. “Soya plastics are processed at much lower temperatures, yielding energy savings over synthetic plastics during processing,” the report said. “These comparable flow properties make soya protein plastics a viable drop-in replacement for synthetic resins.” The challenges soya-based plastic face are adjusting the processing to better suit the end use. USB’s Rust said: “The organic portions of the solid components of soyabeans start to degrade around 350°F (176°C) and the processing temperatures of most thermoplastics are around 400°F (204°C).” “In addition, these organic products tend to absorb water which must be overcome. A process such as torrefaction (roasting at high temperature in the absence of oxygen) has been shown to help. However, the resulting product is brown/

black which inhibits colour matching.” He added that “other processing techniques using these organic soya materials such as solution casting to make films are being developed.” When asked about the advantages and disadvantages of soyabean plastic, Rust said “our customers testify that soya performs at, or exceeds expectations, in industrial uses. Success has been seen in the usage of soyabean oil to make a thermoset such as polyurethanes in seating foams, unsaturated polyester resins in fibreglass composites, and alkyds in paints.” “Soyabean oil does not have the chemical make-up to be turned directly into a thermoplastic. However, after chemical modification such as epoxidation, it is used effectively as a plasticiser for some petroleum-based thermoplastics to make them more flexible. Until now, soya plasticisers have been only used as a secondary plasiticiser at low levels. “However, more recent developments have improved the performance where they can be used as primary plasticisers replacing petroleum-based materials such as phthalates,” said Rust.

Canola PHA

Regarding another alternative to petroleum-based plastic, Swiss food giant Nestlé announced in January that it would be partnering up with US bioplastics manufacturer Danimer Scientific – a producer of polyhydroxyalkannoate (PHA) biopolymer derived from canola – to develop biodegradable plastic bottles. Danimer Scientific’s says “PHAs are polyesters biosynthesised by a bacterium fed by inexpensive oils derived from the seeds of plants such as canola, soya and palm.” For this venture, Nestlé would be using Danimer Scientific’s PHA biopolymer to manufacture the bio-based plastic for water bottles. The company explained that production begins with fermentation where canola oil is consumed by soil bacteria and converted into PHA, which is then processed into powder form and combined with other biopolymers to create biodegradable plastic resins. The biopolymer can therefore be used to manufacture an array of biodegradable products, including food packaging, bottles and drinking straws. In an article written in April 2018 by Danimer Scientific’s chief technology officer Phil Van Trump in Plastics Today, plastics expert Dr Jenna Jambeck of the Univeristy of Georgia and a team of researchers tested PHA in seawater conditions and found that it would biodegrade www.ofimagazine.com

17/07/2019 11:30:35

RENEWABLE RESOURCES over the course of six months, whereas traditional plastic remained unchanged and intact. The global biodegradable plastics industry is forecast to grow from at a rate of 19.3% from 2018 through to 2026, Trump wrote. Danimer Scientific plans to open the first commercial production plant for PHA – which it acquired in September 2018 – in Kentucky, USA, where operations would begin in the fourth quarter of 2019. Chief executive officer Stephen Croskey said: “It will be the world’s first PHA commercial plant, positioning us to provide Nodax [the company’s PHA] for a wide variety of applications from food packaging to drinking straws.” The company also partnered up with food and drinks giant PepsiCo in February 2017 to collaborate on developing biodegradable resin. PepsiCo said the collaboration was expected to help expedite the company’s transition to packaging that is completely biodegradable for its snack food portfolio by incorporating PHA. This came as part of the PepsiCo’s 2025 sustainability agenda which it announced in October 2016.

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Danimer Scientific’s marketing manager Richard Ivey said: “If we go to build another plant, we’ll probably build it closer to our main raw material source, which would be canola.” the Western Producer reported. He added that it requires 1lb (0.45kg) of canola to produce 1lb of PHA. In 2014, chief operating officer Michael Smith told the newspaper that the company had global ambitions and hoped to manufacture canola oil bioplastics in Canada.

Corporate moves and the future

Many food producing companies are taking action against single-use plastics in their products. Dairy firm Arla announced in February that it would be bringing 40M wood-based packages into supermarkets this year. German chemicals company BASF announced in January the co-founding of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW), a group of nearly 30 companies searching for alternative solutions to single-use plastics. BASF said the AEPW has invested US$1bn with a goal of investing

US$1.5bn over the next five years to help end plastic waste in the environment. In March, haircare brand Herbal Essenses partnered up with UK recycling specialist TerraCycle to create a recyclable shampoo and conditioner bottle made with 25% ocean-based plastic. Nestlé will be phasing out all non-recyclable plastics between 2020 and 2025. It will also be rolling out paper packaging for its Yes! snack bar in the second half of 2019 and plastic-free packaging with its Smarties confectionery brand, as well paper-based pouches for chocolate brand Milo in 2020, according to just-food.

Conclusion

With governments now addressing the issue of single-use plastics, and companies striving towards sustainability in their supply chains, there is hope that the environmental impact of plastic pollution is being addressed. The oilseed industry holds a place in sustainable packaging but only time can tell if its innovations will be used by packaging industries.  Gabriel Day is OFI’s assistant editor

OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019 35

17/07/2019 11:30:37

STATISTICS STATISTICAL NEWS FROM MINTEC Sunflowerseed Sunflowerseed prices rose in June, up 5% m-o-m, driven by slightly lower 2019/20 forecasts. Global production of sunflowerseed in 2019/20 has been estimated to fall 2% y-o-y, to 50.5M tonnes. This is down only slightly from last year’s record high of 51.5M tonnes. A slowdown in production from Ukraine, down 1%, and Russia, down 6%, is expected in 2019/20. Weather conditions in the Black Sea region continue to be positive. However, they are not as advantageous as the last 2018/20 season, which brought about an early harvest.

Sunﬂowerseed prices (US$/tonne)

Rapeseed Rapeseed prices on Euronext fell slightly m-o-m, down 0.22%. The average price for June was 3% up when compared to June 2018. Dry weather conditions in March and April kept the average price high as concerns over a repeat of 2018 droughts remained. The commencement of the harvest in June led to prices easing towards the end of the month. EU 2019/20 production is estimated down 7% y-o-y, seeing global rapeseed production down 1% overall.

Rapeseed prices (US$/tonne)

Soyabean Soyabean prices are up 3% m-o-m, and 4% y-o-y. Prices are currently being supported by a forecast of falling soyabean production in the new 2019/20 season, down 4% globally and down 15% for the USA. The fall in US production has been caused by relentless rains seen across the main growing regions at the start of the planting period, which commenced in April. The sowing season has now ﬁnished with the severe conditions leading to a 10% drop in harvested area, estimated for 2019. Soyabean prices (US$/tonne)

Prices of selected oils (US$/tonne) Feb 19

Mar 19

Apr 19

May 19

Jun 19

Soyabean

736.8

720.7

711.2

703.8

722.1

Crude palm

588.4

557.9

564.7

534.5

528.3

Palm olein

581.5

549.3

554.1

522.5

519.2

Coconut

747.8

721.7

688.1

660.0

677.9

Rapeseed

810.5

795.4

800.0

809.9

821.7

Sunﬂower

707.5

699.5

710.5

717.0

729.8

Palm kernel

740.8

685.6

647.1

621.0

566.3

Average

702.0

676.0

668.0

653.0

652.0

Index

166.0

160.0

158.0

155.0

36 OFI – JULY/AUGUST 2019

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Mintec works in partnership with sales, purchasing and supply chain professionals to deliver valuable insight into worldwide commodity and raw materials markets using innovative technology and a knowledgeable team of specialists. We provide independent insight and trusted data to help the world's most prestigious brands to make informed commercial decisions. Tel: +44 (0)1628 851313 Email: sales@mintecglobal.com Web: www.mintecglobal.com

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18/07/2019 11:09:49

ARTE E GENIO ITALIANI

ITALIAN

MIND HEART, HAND

The Italian first class engineering company, globally recognized as one of the leaders in the design and manufacture of plants for oilseeds crushing and solvent extraction, edible oils and fats refining, glycerine distillation, oleochemicals (fatty acids, biofuels) and special plants. Each industrial unit is fully in-house designed in all its true intimate aspects, from the the technological concept to the very final completion on site.

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