Palm Oil: Why Brand prefer it and Alternatives

Turn over any packaged food in the Indian market today, and you're very likely to find "Palm Oil" listed, whether it's nutcrackers from Haldiram’s or Potato chips from Lay’s and to hide it, brands use different names like "Palmolein" or "Vegetable Oil (Palm)”.

Palm oil in India has more aliases than a Bollywood villain, who keeps showing up!

in this blog lets break down why do brands prefer Palm oil, Its health impact and alternatives, using simple language but with an OG Twist!

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Lay’s Europe primarily uses Canola Oil In its products whereas in India, its Palm Oil. So next time you pick Lay’s, just think about this fact!

Is Palm Oil really bad and why do brands use it?

Palm oil is loaded with saturated fat ~50% which raises LDL (Bad Cholesterol). But then why do brands use it? - Simple. Its Cheap!

Palm oil isn’t that bad in itself, but reuse for frying makes it really bad and since it has neutral taste, its difficult to figure if it has been reused and hence brands love it!

Also, semi solid state at room temperature makes it cheapest option for achieving perfect texture for biscuits, and almost every biscuits in India uses Palm oil and since it has neutral taste, it is also an ideal candidate for frying chips and snacks.

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Remember your favorite tea time snack: Britannia Bourbon? its Maida + Sugar + Palm Oil!

Alternatives?

As more consumers are getting aware and are reading food labels, the demand for clean label products is going up and new age brands are entering the market.

If you are one of those “aware” consumers who read labels before buying, do look for better substitutes like

Sunflower Oil: Good fats, but not ideal for deep frying repeatedly, so if a brand is using sunflower oil generally uses it in small batches as repeat use causes its taste to change.

Rice Bran Oil: High smoking point, ideal for frying. Contains oryzanol, which is nothing but antioxidant that come from outer layer of rice which helps improve cholesterol. Rice bran oil costlier than sunflower oil.

Ground Nut Oil: Similar to rice bran oil, high smoke point hence preferred for frying. Rich in vitamin E.

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All the above oils contain phytosterols, which are good for heart health if consumed in moderation.

Craving for Potato chips?

While writing this blog, I was craving potato chips, and I discovered this brand called “Noice” through one of my friend. First thing I did was check the label, and I was pleasantly surprised.

A. Potato 62%

B. Sunflower Oil

C. Iodized Salt

D. Chili Powder

That’s it! and Great taste too! (Not a paid review, LOL!)

The OG Recommendation

Palm oil is not a poison in itself but it becomes really dangerous if reused multiple times, and its hard to detect when that happens. So, its fine if you consume it rarely but bad if your daily diet contain biscuits, namkeen’s, chips which are high on palm oil.

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It is high time you start reading those labels!

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