For week ending January 21, 2010

       However, the consolidated export for the 10-month period to October at 1,202,223 MT in copra terms still lagged by 13.4% from 1,387,953 MT in a similar period year-ago. Breakdown is as follows, in MT: copra 42 (nil last year), coconut oil 650,213 (717,790), copra meal 287,957 (401,338), desiccated coconut 99,412 (118,641), oleochemicals 16,398 as copra (65,176); coco shell charcoal 29,726 (18,231), activated carbon 16,305 (17,382), glycerin 15,885 (15,736), fresh coconuts 1,373 (1,137), Others 22,337 (22,421).

       Export of crude coconut oil went primarily to the US at 44,139 MT and Europe, specifically the Netherlands at 40,700 MT. Other markets were China with 1,000 MT, Taiwan 245 MT, Hong Kong 30 MT and Pakistan 28 MT. Likewise, the US took the lead in cochin oil market at 17,795 MT, followed by Japan at 2,650 MT and China at 261 MT. Still, the US topped in RBD oil with 3,745 MT, trailed by Japan 750 MT, Iran 392 MT, and China 208 MT. Other importers were Pakistan 77 MT, Argentina 63 MT, Israel 42 MT, Australia 18 MT and Vietnam 15 MT.

       Export of copra meal amounting to 53,712 MT during the month went mostly to Korea cornering 35,987 MT to represent 67.0% of aggregate. Pakistan was second biggest importer, dislodging Vietnam in the second spot, with 7,000 MT or 13.0%. Vietnam followed with delivery of 5,940 MT or 11.1%, then China with 4,700 MT or 8.8%. Limited volume also was picked up by Taiwan and Japan at 50 MT and 35 MT, respectively

        Nine countries also took in substantial volume in the range 101-427 MT and jointly shared 17.1%, namely, in descending order: France, Turkey, Japan, China, Russia, Korea, Denmark, Israel, and Brazil; while 23 other countries with total turnover of 956 MT and market share of 9.0% took in volume ranging 12-99 MT.

       In activated carbon, of total ship out of 910 MT during the month, Japan was responsible for 29.1% or 265 MT. Five other countries had market shares no lower than 6% such as US with 138 MT (15.2%), Korea 99 MT (10.8%), Germany 97 MT (10.6%), Belgium 60 MT (6.6%) and Indonesia 55 MT (6.0%). Eight countries with purchases of between 5 MT and 44 MT and total volume of 196 MT contributed nearly a quarter (21.5%) to total sales.

       Cuphea is a new oilseed crop Gesch and other ARS scientists are developing for farmers in the northern Corn Belt. It can be used for a variety of industrial products, including jet fuel and other biofuels. It is a domestic alternative to palm kernel and coconut oils that supply the fatty acids needed to make thousands of products, from soap to motor oil. Some 260 undomesticated species of cuphea are native to Central America, South America and North America. Gesch wanted to know how cuphea might interact when rotated with corn, soybean and wheat. He found only beneficial effects. Cuphea did not harm yields of the other crops, nor did those crops harm cuphea yields. The research was recently published in the Agronomy Journal.

       Although there was no total tariff elimination for Malaysian palm oil, the prevailing tariff rate was much lower than the previous 30 percent. Basri highlighted that lower tariff meant that Malaysian palm oil could be imported by importers from China at a lower price, increasing the competitiveness of the commodity in the huge market there. Tariff for items categorized in the sensitive list will be reduced to zero to five percent by 2018 in the China-ASEAN FTA. Malaysia became the major palm oil supplier of China in 2002, Basri said, adding that it took up 60 percent of the palm oil market in China.

       Indonesia charges a minimum tax rate of 1.5% on CPO exports if the reference price stands at between $701 and $750/MT, based on the average spot CPO price in Rotterdam. The export tax is aimed at ensuring supply for the domestic requirement of cooking oil raw material and calming volatility in local cooking oil prices.

       China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has started operation of its biodiesel project in China?s southern province of Hainan. The plant has a capacity of 60,000 MT per year. The demonstration project is jointly developed by CNOOC and Sinopec?s Petroleum Science Research Institute (PSRI). CNOOC is the majority shareholder and PRSI is the owner of the intellectual property rights of the project. Hainan will be the test market for the biodiesel.

       Peru is the world?s leading exporter of fishmeal and accounts for about 30% of world fishmeal production. Its major market is China. According to data released by Peruvian customs, exports to China in January-November 2009 fell by nearly 15% to 677,056 MT from 793,409 MT in 2008 but rose by around 40% from 487,818 MT at the same time in 2007.

       The authors analyzed the 1993-2008 data from the National Health Interview Survey and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and found that smoking still had a higher mortality risk than obesity, but that by 2008 the obese were losing more quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) through disability and activity limitations. ?In 1993 the QALYs lost were much smaller for obesity compared to smoking. However, as a result of the increasing prevalence of obesity, the contribution of obesity-related QALYs lost increased consistently and had increased by 127 percent in 2008, slightly more than smoking?, the authors wrote. During the 15-year period, they found that incidence of smoking decreased by 18.5 percent, mostly in the last six years, while the proportion of the population that was obese increased by 85 percent.