Consumers in America are increasingly accepting palm oil’s health benefits, as seen in the rise of shipments to the US, according to the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC).
“Palm oil nutrition awareness is gaining momentum there,” MPOC deputy chief executive officer Dr Kalyana Sundram told Business Times in an interview in Petaling Jaya recently.
Palm oil in its natural form does not contain any trans fat and thus, is a healthy alternative fat for making bakery shortenings, confectionery fats and margarine that go into baked and processed foods like chocolates and cookies.
In California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that from January 1 2010, all 88,000 restaurants in the state will be prohibited from using oil, margarine and shortening containing trans fats. Retail baked goods have an additional 1-year grace period until January 1 2011. Packaged food, however, are exempted.
In New York, all bakeries and restaurants in the city have since July 1 been ordered to stop using hydrogenated oils in crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods and deep-fried desserts. Philadelphia and Seattle are two other cities to have done the same.
The rising palm oil consumption in the US is helped, in part, by the US government’s move to mandate declaration of saturated fat and trans fat levels separately on nutritional labels from January 1 2006.
According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), eating saturated fat and trans fats raises low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. This means, trans fats – listed on food labels as partially hydrogenated vegetable oil – can raise bad cholesterol and lower healthy cholesterol, increasing the risk of heart attacks.
Many food manufacturers in the US add hydrogen, in the presence of a chemical catalyst, to soya oil and canola to harden them into bakery fats. Hydrogenation increases the melting point of fats and gives food a longer shelf life but it results in harmful trans fats.
The FDA warned that these artificial trans fat is so common that the average American eats about 2kg of artery-clogging trans fat in a year.
Palm oil, on the other hand, is a healthier choice for use in processed food because it is not genetically modified and does not contain harmful trans fat.
Rising palm oil consumption in the US could also be attributed to a patented fat blend that uses up to 50 per cent palm oil, discovered by Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) and Brandeis University biomedical scientists Dr Kalyana Sundram and Dr K.C. Hayes, 13 years ago.
They had since licensed US Nasdaq-listed Smart Balance Inc to market the patented blend in America.
Last year, Smart Balance posted US$160 million (RM521.60 million) in margarine sales alone. While it is not the No.1 margarine brand in the US, Smart Balance is fast eating into its rivals’ market share because the patented blend is proven to help improve cholesterol ratios.
“Since 1996, Smart Balance has been paying royalty to MPOB and Brandeis University for the patented blend. This will expire in 2015,” Dr Kalyana Sundram said.
When asked to estimate America’s increasing appetite for Malaysian palm oil, he replied: “This year, the US could buy a million tonnes. So far, in the first half of this year, we’ve shipped more than 450,000 tonnes there.
“A million tonnes is not much because it is less than three per cent of the total edible oils consumption there. There is still tremendous growth potential.”
Palm oil is richer in mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fatty acids than any other saturates, even more than the average olive oil. When it comes to blood cholesterol, palm oil is scientifically proven to be just as heart healthy as olive oil.
In Malaysia, fastfood outlets like Dunkin’ Donuts, Burger King, McDonald’s Corp, Wendy’s, Kenny Rogers Chicken Roasters, Starbucks, A&W, KFC and Pizza Hut have long been using trans fat free palm oil in their food preparation.
More Recent Palm Oil News 
- CPO Rises To Two Week High; Industry Data In Focus
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Up On Weekend Short Covering; Upside Limited
- Crude Palm Oil Recovers Late On Short Covering
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Down As Demand Prospects Weaken
- Crude Palm Oil Rises Slightly; Weak Demand Limits Upside
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Up On South America Crop Worries
- Crude Palm Oil Rises On Pre-Holiday Short-Covering
- Crude Palm Oil Falls Due To Bearish Export Outlook
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Higher On South America Weather
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Down On Profit Taking; USDA Report In Focus
- Crude Palm Oil Rises In Light Trade; USDA Data In Focus
- Crude Palm Oil Steady; South America Weather May Underpin
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Up In Light Trade; Fresh Cues Awaited
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Up On Weather Concerns; More Gains Likely
- Crude Palm Oil Ends Down On Profit Taking, Europe Worries
PRO Palm Oil Live Market News
- European Veg Oil AM Palm Oil & Lauric Oil Prices – Feb 8
- India Commodity Prices Including Palm Oil – Agriculture
- CPO Rises To Two Week High; Industry Data In Focus
- Indonesia PT KPB Sells 6,500 Tons Crude Palm Oil (CPO) At Auction Wednesday
- Malaysian PM Cash Market Prices For Palm Oil – Feb. 8
- Malaysia End-January Palm Oil Stocks Likely Up 1% On Weak Exports
- China Dalian Commodity Exchange Grain Stocks, Feb 08
- China Dalian Grain Futures Closing Prices, Volume
- BMD Crude Palm Oil (CPO) Rises To 1-Week High But Gains Limited
- Malaysian AM Cash Market Prices For Palm Oil – Feb. 8
- BMD Crude Palm Oil (CPO) Rises On Short Covering; May Rise More
- BMD Crude Palm Oil (CPO) Tipped To Open Up MYR5-MYR10 After Holiday
- Asia-Pacific Commodities Events Calendar
- Southeast Asia Palm Oil Weather – Feb 7
- Southeast Asia Palm Oil Weather – Feb 7
