About Elaeis oleifera (Kunth) Cortés
Elaeis oleifera is a palm species commonly known as the American oil palm. It is native to South and Central America, growing naturally from Honduras to northern Brazil. Unlike its close relative Elaeis guineensis, the African oil palm, Elaeis oleifera is rarely planted commercially for palm oil production. However, hybrids created from these two species are commercially cultivated. This hybridization is primarily done to introduce disease resistance to the crop, and to increase the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in the resulting palm oil.
