The ubiquitous ingredient

Palm oil trees are native to the forests of West and Central Africa where the oil has been used locally for centuries. However the commercial use of palm oil has exploded over recent years where as a cheaper option it has replaced the likes of  cornola and soya oil in the production of everyday items from bread and biscuits to washing detergents and beauty products. 

Sixty two million tons of palm oil were consumed in 2017, with the demand still unfilled.  This ongoing demand has resulted in the destruction of  ten million hectares of  south-east Asian rainforest to make way for palm plantations. This habitat loss has been disastrous for the animal population. Orangutans,  rhinos, elephants and tigers are now listed as critically endangered. 

Palm oil now lurks in 70% of all cosmetics where it is used as an emulsifier. Most soaps, shampoos and skin creams also contain palm oil.

Palm oil is also widely used in  commercial bread and biscuit baking where it is a cheap easy to use ingredient.  Many ready to use meals are also offenders, for instance palm oil  forms 20% of the weight of a packet of instant noodles. Palm oil is used to create a smooth shiny exterior in large scale chocolate production. 30 -40 per cent of detergents and washing powders have been recorded to contain palm oil. Many puddings, deserts and pies contain palm oil as do many ice cream products – apart from New Zealand.

Most OECD countries now require product ingredients to be listed on the package. However palm oil is cunningly obscured under a number of names such as; sodium kernalate, elaeis guineesis and hydrogenated palm glycerides. The palm oil users are coming up with new names all the time so making it hard for the shopper to spot.

The director of the Rainforest Foundation, Simon Counsell, says “it’s become a highly pervasive ingredient. Very often it’s impossible  to recognise which products it’s in. Meanwhile  the deforestation continues and  essentially pretty much any wildlife living in those forests will have lost its habitat under these carpets of palm oil plantations. “