You Can Save the Orangutans AND Have Your Palm Oil, Too

Yesterday one of the blogs I read daily pointed me to this UPI article that relates the story of two Girl Scouts from Ann Arbor, Michigan. The two girls decided to stop selling Girl Scout cookies when they learned that the cookies contain palm oil, notorious for being harvested on large plantations that cause harm to orangutan populations. The article says:

Twelve-year-olds Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen learned while doing research for an award project that palm oil used in Girl Scout Cookies is produced in rainforests that used to be inhabited by orangutans… To grow the fern-like plant that produces palm oil, trees in the rainforest are cut down and then the entire area is set on fire.

The two girls are now trying to raise money to save the orangutans, which is commendable. However, I wish that someone involved with this article had offered a solution to the problem rather than just point out yet another evil of mass-produced processed foods. You see, food processors began to replace the trans-fats in foods with palm oil when trans-fats were getting a lot of bad press. But the palm oil they used was the cheapest on the market, which is produced using the massive plantations and the slash-and-burn methods described by the Girl Scouts. It doesn’t have to be this way, folks: did you know that there is a “good” palm oil on the market? A palm oil that’s incredibly healthy for you, and its production respects both the environment and the culture of the people who produce it? Let me explain.

In full disclosure, I feel like I should remind you that my mother-in-law owns and runs a tropical oil company, Jungle Products. I’ve also done some design work for the company in the past. But I really, honestly, truly love and believe in those oils. Case in point: Jungle Products’ Red Palm Oil. I have two jars of this oil sitting on my counter, and I use it to cook everything from breakfast potatoes to grilled veggies to pasta dishes. I mention it A LOT in my Recipes section, which is because I haven’t ever found anything quite like it. Red palm oil contains extremely high amounts of Vitamin A, which gives the oil its bright red color, and it also has the full spectrum of Vitamin E: tocopherols and tocotrienols. It’s also high-heat tolerant (above 500ºF) and shelf-stable for over a year.

The best thing about this red palm oil is how it’s produced. Women’s co-ops in West Africa harvest palk fruits from their native habitat, meaning that the trees grow wild. No forest is cut down, no habitat is burned. The oil is produced using methods that are centuries-old in those communities, and the women who work to make the oil are given the opportunity to support their families. These things are incredibly important in West Africa, where instability and corruption are a part of everyday life. Click here to read more about Jungle Products’ palm oil source.

This product is, in my opinion, one of the most responsible products on the market today, and it’s delicious to boot. Red palm oil is easy to dismiss as being too expensive, but the $14 jar will last you for a pretty long time. I’m a heavy user, and one jar will still last me for about a month. Red palm oil is also easy to dismiss is being too out-of-the-ordinary, too unfamiliar. I say, be a little adventurous. Here’s a good place to start if you’re wondering how to begin using red palm oil. Have fun!

P.S. I just noticed that the UPI article states that “deforestation is spreading rapidly as the demand for fat-free palm oil rises.” Uh, palm oil IS a fat, guys. I think they mean that palm oil is trans-fat free, don’t you?