Palm Oil
Level 4 — Significant concernsIn Winter's Dictionary2 sources
Palm Oil is a other — Yellow-brown buttery edible solid; used as shortening, tallow substitute
Also: Palm Butter, Palm Tallow
What it does
Yellow-brown buttery edible solid; used as shortening, tallow substitute
Where you'll see it
shortenings, soaps, ointments, ~3/4 of all palm oil goes into ultra-processed food
What the research says
Per van Tulleken: if a product contains palm oil it is UPF. RBD (refined-bleached-deodorized) palm oil drives Indonesian deforestation (2015 peat fires emitted more daily CO2 than US economy). Saturated-fat content.
[ultra-processed-people] Refined-bleached-deodorised (RBD) palm oil is stripped of its natural antioxidants (palm tocotrienol), colour, aroma and flavour by heating, phosphoric acid degumming, caustic soda neutralisation, bentonite clay bleaching and high-pressure steam deodorisation. Paul Hart (former Unilever) argues RBD oils should be NOVA group 4 outright. Three-quarters of all palm oil produced goes into UPF; van Tulleken concludes: if a product contains palm oil it is UPF.
Regulatory status
- EU: approved
Sources
- Ultra-Processed People (van Tulleken) — Chapter 2: The invention of UPF: Oil for UPF needs to be bland, plain and flavourless ... You can't make Nutella with spicy red oil
- A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives (Winter): Oil palms are native to central Africa and Malaysia. A fatty solid with a faint violet odor