Palm oil entered the Russian food industry in the 90s. Since then, its popularity has grown steadily from year to year. This vegetable fat significantly reduces the cost of products, allowing the manufacturer to bail out more money.
Dangers of palm oil
It is obtained from the leaves and fruits of the oil palm growing in Malaysia and Indonesia. This oil has found active use in the dairy industry.
Vegetable fat is much cheaper than animal fat, but, according to WHO, it is very harmful to human health. Due to the high melting point (38 - 40 ° C), palm fat is not completely absorbed when consumed. It turns into a kind of plasticine and is deposited on the walls of blood vessels. Over time, this leads to atherosclerosis, metabolic disorders, and in some cases - to oncology.
It is difficult to fight the addition of "palm" to food products until the state passes the appropriate laws. However, you can learn to determine for yourself whether a product contains this unhealthy fat or not.
Packaging
Only a special examination can reveal the palm oil content in a product with 100% accuracy. However, even an ordinary buyer, with due care, is able to "expose" an unscrupulous manufacturer.
Do not be lazy to study the packaging of the product. Some manufacturers do not hide the addition of palm oil. However, many still disguise it as the ingredient "vegetable fat" or "milk fat substitute" (MILF).
Price
Don't go after cheap products. The low price in 99% of cases indicates the presence of a "palm" in the composition. However, an expensive product does not guarantee its absence.
Cottage cheese and sour cream
The quality of sour cream is determined by GOST 31452-2012, and cottage cheese - by GOST 31453-2013. If they are present on the packaging, you can be sure that there are no vegetable fats in the dairy products.
Even if the sour cream contains only two ingredients: sourdough and standardized cream, do not rush to relax. So many manufacturers are cunning, because palm oil can be contained in cream.
A number of tests can be done at home. So, sour cream without "palm" in the refrigerator always thickens, and on a hot pancake it releases whey. A product with vegetable fat does not behave like this at temperature extremes.
Real cottage cheese in room conditions begins to acidify over time, but at the same time it does not change color. The “palm” product will wind up, covered with a yellowish crust, but its taste will not change.
Cheese
GOST R 52686-2006 on the packaging is a sure sign that the cheese does not contain vegetable oil. A real product softens in the sun, while a vegetable analogue, on the contrary, hardens and releases large drops of fat.
Cheese with ZMZH has a "soapy" flavor. It also crumbles quite a bit when cut.
Butter
Real butter is made only from pasteurized cream. If the composition contains the following ingredients - refuse to purchase:
- milk fat substitute;
- refined deodorized, modified oils;
- preservatives.
If there is no GOST 32261-2013 on the package, most likely there is a product with a “palm tree” inside.
High-quality butter does not sizzle in a hot frying pan. When the temperature rises, a white film can be seen on its surface. The product with vegetable fat, when melted, forms a homogeneous liquid.
