PALM OIL AND KERNELS. 



35 



This was done by Germany putting a heavy tariff 

 of 6 a ton on refined edible oils, importing the palm 

 kernels free, and charging her own manufacturers and 

 countries with whom she had special treaties, an extra 

 price which enabled her to undersell the British market. 

 She also captured the Canadian market, although Liver- 

 pool enjoyed exceptionally low freight to Canada. Before 

 the war, also, Britain imported margarine to the extent 

 of 1,518,297 cwts. in 1913, value 3,917,701. Of this 

 amount 1,483,417 cwts. came from Holland. Now 

 Britain is making her own margarine from her own 

 raw material, and as it was being bought retail at from 

 7d. to Is. per lb., while butter was costing 2s. to 2s. 6d., 

 the gain to the consumer at home is great. 



Messrs. Lever now have their own steamers running 

 between West Africa and Liverpool for their trade in 

 kernels and oil. In Sierra Leone alone, the palm kernels 

 exported in 1917 reached the record figure of 58,000 tons. 



The following table gives the range of the principal 

 constants of commercial palm kernel oil. The corre- 

 sponding figures for coconut oil are added for com- 

 parison : 



When the weight of a cask of palm oil is ascertained, 



