State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir has said that his ministry is ready to support a pilot project to produce red palm cooking oil as part of efforts to develop an alternative to regular cooking oil.

“The State-Owned Enterprises (Ministry) is ready to facilitate this pilot project for the red cooking oil production,” Thohir said in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra, according to a statement received here on Saturday.

The government, through the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry and the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry, will seek to realize the program, the minister added.

He also said that on top of assisting in the production, his ministry is also committed to supporting the sale of red palm cooking oil and expanding its market to the global level.

Thus, red cooking oil production will not only be beneficial to the food sector, but it will also have a profound impact on improving the people’s economy.

“We will also help in its marketing overseas, such as in China and Africa,” he informed.

Many people have no idea of the advantages of red palm cooking oil, the minister said.

He cited a study, which found that this type of oil can help suppress cholesterol.

According to the results of research conducted by the Palm Oil Research Center (PPKS), red palm cooking oil is healthier than regular cooking oil because it does not go through the bleaching process, a process of discoloration that consumers do not like.

In fact, compared to crude palm oil in the form of virgin palm oil (VPO), the composition of saturated fatty acids in red palm cooking oil is lower.

Source: Antara News