Coconut oil prices seen going down

The price of coconut oil is expected to go down by P10 to P15 per kilo within the month as local oil refiners announced they will start buying imported palm olein that will be sold in wet markets and GMA rolling stores.

In a statement, Jesus L. Arranza, president of the Coconut Oil Refiners Association (CORA) said they will be importing cheaper palm olein through the help of the Office of the President and the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Arranza said initially they will buy 2,000 metric tons of palm olein from Malaysia and Indonesia. The volume will be adjusted depending on the price and supply situation both here and the world market.

“This is a ‘win-win’ solution because aside from bringing down the price of edible oil for the masses, we will also be able to take advantage of the strong demand of coconut oil in the world market at higher value,” Arranza said.

As of June 7, the mill gate price of copra already increased to P43.88 per kilo from only P38.63 per kilo in the first week of May.

On the other hand, crude coconut oil is now selling at $1,636.67 per metric ton in the world market from only $1,439.50/MT in May.

Palm olein is selling at $1,255/MT. It is already good for cooking as it is already refined, bleached and deodorized

Arranza said the price of coconut oil in the country is dictated by its value in the international market because 80 percent of the local production is exported, while the remaining 20 percent is allocated to fill up the domestic requirement of about 400,000MT per year.

Meanwhile, he said CORA will also team up with the Department of Trade & Industry-National Price Coordinating Council, barangays, market administrators and the media to make sure that prices of edible oil will really go down with the entry into the market of palm olein.