Dr Jean Graille, a world renowned biotechnology expert who focuses on fats and lipids, completed his studies at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Marseille [National Chemical Engineering Institute of Marseilles]. He began working as a researcher at the Institut des Corps Gras [Institute for Fats and Oils] before continuing his career in the Agribusiness Programme of CIRAD, where he managed the team for ‘Food and Non-Food Substances – Lipid Technology Sciences’. Dr Graille won the Chevreul medal in 1997 and went on to receive the Kaufmann Prize in 1999 – the first French person to do so. In an interview, he dismantles the myths perpetuated by the anti-palm oil lobby in France, and issues the timely reminder that there is no justification to avoid the use of this important product.
