To ask people to help me find palm oil free products.

[YourHandInMyHand]

After the Iceland ad I've decided I need to stop putting off searching for products that don't contain palm oil and actually do it. Obviously I know Iceland's own range will be palm oil free but what about other brands and products?

I bought a peanut butter last week called Pip N Nut which is palm oil free and tasty but that's as far as I've managed shopping wise so far.

If you have found products, groceries and toiletries which are palm oil free please share them here. Maybe if people had a quick list of products that they know don't contain palm oil more busy shoppers will make those choices.

I've heard there is also the option of sustainable palm oil sources so I'd be interested in knowing more about this too.

Following. I’ve had areal epiphany about the damage we do to the environment and trying to change my ways for the better. Even managed to persuade ds6 to ask Santa for more experience type presents rather than more plastic.

There needs to be government legislation to ban the use of unsustainable palm oil products. Even the most motivated consumers are going to find it hard to avoid otherwise let alone those who don't know.
I am going to do my best with my shopping but consumer action is not enough!

Sorry- that’s links not very helpful - i’ve been searching for a list of uk products with palm oil in them so I can make sure i can avoid - but not been successful so far.

The ad is a step in the right direction, but actually the stance Iceland is taking is probably not the answer. Palm oil is preferable to other oils as by volume it requires far less land. The important question is whether the palm oil used is sustainable or not - at present, companies that use sustainable palm oil eg. M&S, Sainsbury’s, don’t advertise the fact as they don’t want to draw attention to palm oil being an ingredient in the first place as it has a stigma attached to it. What we really need is clear labelling and public knowledge about purchasing products using sustainable palm oil only. (Amazing what you learn on a trip to the zoo). www.wwf.org.uk/updates/british-companies-leading-way-palm-oil-sustainability

From the World Wildlife page:

Other names for Palm Oil
Vegetable Oil, Vegetable Fat, Palm Kernel, Palm Kernel Oil, Palm Fruit Oil, Palmate, Palmitate, Palmolein, Glyceryl, Stearate, Stearic Acid, Elaeis Guineensis, Palmitic Acid, Palm Stearine, Palmitoyl Oxostearamide, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Kernelate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Lauryl Lactylate/Sulphate, Hyrated Palm Glycerides, Etyl Palmitate, Octyl Palmitate, Palmityl Alcohol

What chance have you got as a consumer if they can list it as fucking Vegetable Oil!!!!

gamer I didn’t realise those things were palm oil, it’s in literally everything. I have decided to shop more at Iceland because at least they’re making a stand.

Actually this is a really good score card showing the best UK companies with regards to sustainable palm oil use
palmoilscorecard.panda.org/check-the-scores/filter/country/uk

Yes clear labelling would help greatly!

DP and DS are keen for me to find a Nutella alternative. I too was shocked that it seems to be in bloody everything and I'm sure as most busy working mums would agree, I don't have time to look at the ingredients list of every item I pop in my trolley and scan for palm oil or code name versions of it.

I agree there needs to be more action than just consumer action. We need to look at all the processed products that are pumped with oils/fats, we need to look at sustainability, at environmental issues, at the impact on the countries where these are the maintaining booming industries. It's a huge issue and one that won't be solved overnight.

For now though even a list of the staples I buy regularly that I can quickly and easily buy regularly knowing they are either palm oil free or sustainable palm oil would help and I'm glad to see others feeling the same way.

Solid shampoos and conditioners I think are better but I need to check for palm oil free ones, anyone know of any? I use a cider vinegar rinse to remove the residue and I use coconut oil and honey to clean and moisturise my face hit that was more of a plastic free issue as these come on glass jars but at least they are palm oil free too.

Something I've been doing when food shopping is looking for products labelled "all-butter", so things like pastry and biscuits. Tastes better too.

Of course the disadvantage is it's more expensive.

gamer that is a shockingly long list!

For soaps, shampoo etc i know a lot of people aren't keen on lush but from what I seen last night they do seem to have some palm oil free stuff.
I agree it's ridiculous what they can list it is, because how are we meant to go through every ingredient in every product we buy and check for it.

This www.shoppalmoilfree.co.uk is a good website but I too need to try harder.

Re chococolate, most of the Lidl and Aldi ones don't have palm oil and are a million times nicer than Cadburys etc. Linda Mccartney vegetarian products now have palm oil so have stopped buying them. I contacted the company and they sent some blurb about sustainability, but as PP noted above, no-one is trumpeting this on their packaging, but instead quietly replacing other ingredients with this and hoping we won't notice. I won't even buy products if I KNOW the palm oil is sustainable - surely any continued use of it means that it encourages others to keep on with the deforestation etc as they know there is a market for it. Anyhow, anyone wanting veg sausages etc, I discovered that Tesco own brand ones are PO free (at present ...)

Sorry for the stupid question but WHY is palm oil in everything? What does it do? Is it a preservative?

I’m surprised at Linda McCartney products containing palm oil. You’d think they’d have an ethical stance on it.

Lots of gravy granules have palm oil in them. I now make my own gravy.

I Tesco online shop... just went through my basket and checked the ingredients of everything. Removed thr palm oil things. I noticed that Warburton bread has it but it's sustainable so good that that was noted.

Maybe we need to start a campaign for improved product labelling so that all products sold in U.K. are labelled as ‘ Contains products derived from Palm Oil’ with a bracket afterwards saying sustainable, if that applies.
It wouldn’t be difficult. Iceland might support it. Any Iceland executives out there?

Generally I've found Aldi own products seem to be better at not having it in, it's the big brands that do, and in some really strange stuff - custard for pity's sake! Making my own now.
I'm really struggling for shampoo and conditioner though, so if anyone can recommend some that I can either get online or is reasonably easy to get (fairly rural where I am) I'd be grateful!

Ooh and where can I get the Gu chocolate spread?? That sounds yum!

gamerwidow that list is incredible 

Is palm oil always listed as palm oil?

Yes, there was a ruling in 2014 that is must explicitly appear on an ingredients list. I read that on Newsround!

This isn't strictly true. gamerwidow has posted a list, and yes, all those things are palm oil.

Legally UK labelling can't just say 'vegetable oil' it has to specify what vegetable, but things derived from palm like 'stearic acid' or 'diglycerides of fatty acids' etc etc don't specify that they come from palm.

Lots of retailers only use RSPO palm oil in their own brand products (I can vouch for Tesco, Waitrose and Aldi) but quite frankly, the volume of palm demanded by manufacturing makes the sustainability debatable. Also RSPO is pretty toothless tbh.

Palm oil is solid at room temperature, but being a plant oil it doesn't have the health implications of animal and dairy based fats. That's why it's so popular. It's also cheap (if you aren't an orangutan) photo attached from RSPO website. I'm not convinced that's 'sustainable' I'm afraid.

This peanut butter is palm oil free. From Aldi

Another request for shampoo/conditioner preferably available from a supermarket?

The list I posted was shocking to me too. I just looked in my bathroom and all these things have palm oil derivatives