Palm oil and palm kernel oil come from the same fruit, yet they end up in two very different parts of everyday life. At Cefaan Farms, we produce both, and we’re often asked how one crop can supply such a wide range of industries. The short answer is that the oil palm gives us two distinct oils — and both are worth understanding.
One Fruit, Two Oils
Fresh palm oil comes from pressing the soft, reddish flesh of the palm fruit. It’s the oil most people picture when they think of cooking oil — rich in colour, stable at high heat, and a staple in kitchens across West Africa. Palm kernel oil, on the other hand, is extracted from the hard seed at the centre of the same fruit. It behaves more like coconut oil, with a higher saturated fat content that makes it useful well beyond the kitchen.
Where Our Oils Show Up
Fresh Palm Oil from our plantation goes into cooking, food manufacturing, and traditional dishes that rely on its natural colour and flavour. Our Crude Palm Kernel Oil (CPKO) is in higher demand from soap makers, cosmetics formulators, and pharmaceutical producers, who value its cleansing and moisturising properties. Even the by-product of kernel oil extraction, Palm Kernel Cake, doesn’t go to waste — it becomes protein-rich feed for poultry, cattle, and fish farms.
How We Keep It Sustainable
Sustainability isn’t an afterthought for us — it shapes how we plant, harvest, and process. We manage our plantation to protect soil health, we’re steadily replanting to keep our stands productive for the long term, and our processing facility is built around minimising waste, since almost every part of the fruit has a use. It’s a model that lets us grow output without growing our environmental footprint.
Whether you’re sourcing fresh palm oil for food production or crude palm kernel oil for cosmetics and industrial use, Cefaan Farms produces both to export-ready standards, right here in Akwa Ibom State.
