Laporan Studi Lapangan (Fieldtrip) Hama dan Penyakit Tanaman Komoditi Utama PT. Socfin Indonesia

Abstract

Kelapa sawit (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) merupakan sumber minyak nabati yang sangat penting disamping beberapa minyak nabati lain, seperti kelapa dalam, kacang-kacangan dan biji-bijian lain. Kelapa sawit didatangkan ke Indonesia oleh pemerintah Hindia Belanda pada tahun 1848. Beberapa bijinya ditanam di Kebun Raya Bogor, sementara sisa benihnya ditanam di tepi-tepi jalan sebagai tanaman hias di Deli Serdang, Sumatera Utara pada tahun 1870-an. Pembukaan perkebunan kelapa sawit terus meluas seiring dengan meningkatnya permintaan minyak nabati di berbagai belahan dunia. Minyak sawit digunakan sebagai bahan baku minyak makan, margarin, sabun, kosmetika, dan industri farmasi. Minyak sawit dapat digunakan untuk beragam kegunaan karena keunggulan sifat, yang dimilikinya yaitu tahan oksidasi dengan tekanan tinggi, mampu melarutkan bahan kimia yang tidak larut oleh bahan pelarut lainnya, mempunyai daya melapis yang tinggi dan tidak menimbulkan iritasi pada tubuh dalam bidang kosmetik. Bagian yang paling populer untuk diolah dari kelapa sawit adalah daging buah yang banyak. The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is a very important source of vegetable oil, in addition to several other vegetable oils, such as coconut, nuts, and other seeds. Oil palms were imported to Indonesia by the Dutch East Indies government in 1848. Some of the seeds were planted in the Bogor Botanical Gardens, while the remaining seeds were planted along roadsides as ornamental plants in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra in the 1870s. The opening of oil palm plantations continues to expand along with the increasing demand for vegetable oils in various parts of the world. Palm oil is used as a raw material for cooking oil, margarine, soap, cosmetics, and the pharmaceutical industry. Palm oil can be used for various purposes due to its superior properties, which are resistant to oxidation under high pressure, able to dissolve chemicals that are not soluble in other solvents, has a high coating power and does not cause irritation to the body in the cosmetic field. The most popular part of the oil palm for processing is the flesh of the fruit, which is abundant.