MCT Palm or Coconut Industry

Posted by ALVARO MADRAZO on September 14, 2026

Why do our MCTs come from palm oil rather than coconut oil?

For a long time, at Bruta Slaty Energy, we used MCTs derived from coconut oil.

It was a choice that seemed obvious.

Coconut oil enjoys a very positive image: natural, tropical, plant-based… and often presented as a "cleaner" alternative to palm oil.

But while working on our ingredients and their environmental impact, we decided to question this obvious choice.

Because an ingredient doesn't become sustainable simply because it has a good image.

So we compared the two supply chains by asking ourselves a simple question:

To produce the same quantity of C8/C10, which raw material puts the least pressure on natural resources?

First of all, what are we talking about?

MCTs—or medium-chain triglycerides—are specific fats, mainly composed of C8 and C10 fatty acids.

It is these medium chains that interest us at BSE for their metabolic behavior and their use as an energy source.

But there is a common confusion:

coconut oil ≠ MCT oil.

Coconut oil mainly contains C12 lauric acid, with only a relatively small fraction of C8 and C10. To obtain an MCT oil concentrated in C8/C10, these fractions must be separated and concentrated.

The same fractionation logic can be applied to raw materials from the palm tree, particularly palm kernel oil.

This is the path we chose.

For us, the most important thing remains C8 and C10

There is an essential point in our thinking:

nutritionally, our goal is not to choose between "coconut" and "palm".

Our goal is to provide caprylic (C8) and capric (C10) acids.

Once these fatty acids are correctly fractionated and purified, C8 remains C8 and C10 remains C10, regardless of the plant they come from.

In other words, for us, the plant origin is not a nutritional end in itself.

It is a question of supply chain.

And this distinction gives us significant freedom: we can choose our raw material based on criteria that go beyond simple marketing arguments.

We can look at agricultural yield, land use, biodiversity, geographical origin, traceability, and production practices.

This is precisely what we wanted to do.

Why change from coconut?

The first reason is agricultural yield.

The oil palm is one of the most productive oil-bearing plants in the world. It produces much more oil per hectare than most other oil crops. The IUCN estimates that the palm produces about 35% of all global vegetable oils on less than 10% of the land dedicated to oil crops.

This obviously does not mean that palm is without impact.

On the contrary.

When plantations replace tropical forests or peatlands, the consequences can be significant for biodiversity and the climate.

But the reasoning must go further.

Replacing one crop with another does not make the demand for oil disappear.

It simply shifts that demand.

What about coconut?

This is probably the most counter-intuitive point.

Coconut is often considered a particularly ecological raw material. Yet, several scientific studies show that its impact on biodiversity can be significant.

A study published in Current Biology notably showed that coconut production was associated with impacting more threatened species per volume of oil produced than several other major oil crops.

A more recent study also confirms that oil palm and coconut crops are among the main oil crops responsible for the global footprint on biodiversity.

And when comparing land requirements, the observation is also interesting: palm generally requires much less land than coconut to produce the same amount of oil.

In other words:

a raw material that appears more natural is not necessarily the one that requires the fewest resources.

The two supply chains are not perfect

To produce the same quantity of oil	🌴 Palm	🥥 Coconut
Oil yield	Very high	Lower
Land requirement	Lower	Higher
Potential pressure on forests	High if expansion into forest	Also possible
Potential impact on biodiversity	Significant depending on origin	Significant depending on origin
C8/C10 available	Yes, particularly via palm kernel	Yes, but in limited proportions
Fractionation necessary	Yes	Yes
Our approach	Choose and control the chain	—

This comparison does not allow us to say that "palm is good and coconut is bad".

That would be replacing one shortcut with another.

The real subject is the origin of the raw material, its yield, land-use change, and how it is produced.

So why did we choose palm?

Our decision is based on several elements.

1. We need C8/C10, not just coconut oil

Our goal is not to add coconut oil to our products.

We are specifically looking for C8/C10 MCTs, for their nutritional properties.

Fractionation allows us to concentrate these fatty acids and obtain a raw material adapted to this use.

2. Palm is extremely productive

For an equivalent quantity of oil, palm generally requires much less land than other major oil crops.

This matters when reflecting on the global impact of a raw material.

3. We want to be able to choose our supply chain

This is perhaps the most important point.

Since the nutritional result sought is the same—C8 and C10—we do not want to choose our raw material only because one origin enjoys a better image.

We want to be able to compare supply chains.

And choose the one that allows us to find the best balance between nutrition, availability, agricultural yield, land use, and environmental responsibility.

The real topic: looking behind the marketing

This reflection taught us one thing above all:

an ingredient that "sounds good" is not necessarily an ingredient that has the least impact.

"Natural" does not necessarily mean sustainable.

"Plant-based" does not necessarily mean low impact.

"Palm oil-free" does not necessarily mean better for the planet.

And conversely, the word "palm" should not be enough to automatically condemn a raw material.

To understand the real impact of an ingredient, you have to look behind its name:

how much land is required?
what is its yield?
what land was used?
was there deforestation?
what is the origin of the raw material?
how is it produced and processed?
is it traceable?
and what pressure is created if an entire industry suddenly starts using the same alternative?

At Bruta Slaty Energy, we don't claim to have found a perfect raw material.

We simply tried to ask the question differently.

Since we are primarily looking for the same C8 and C10, we have the freedom to choose the supply chain that seems the most consistent to us.

And it is this freedom that we want to use to make choices based on real impacts rather than the marketing image of ingredients.

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