Replacement for Earth Balance?

[Calliegirl]

Does anyone know of a good replacement for Earth Balance that doesn't contain palm oil? I need something to use for all types of cooking, and things like toast and popcorn.

After seeing the sad photos below of what's happening to the Orangutans, I'd really like/need to cut down and eventually cut out palm oil.

Warning: Slightly graphic photo, but it's more sad than graphic.

Spoiler

He was burned out of a tree. The gloved hands belong to a rescuer.

A baby, tied up and beaten by palm plantation workers.

 

[Rosie1]

Ay yi yi, I had seen that top photo floating around on FB but not the bottom one.

I would love to know about a replacement, as well.

 

[mlp]

I like using unhydrogenated coconut oil. Yakherder had mentioned it on VB, and then I ended up getting some for my parrots (health benefits). The only drawback is keeping it at a temp where it's spreadable instead of rock solid or liquid. It's delicious though.

 

[FortyTwo]

Unfortunately, there's going to be corruption in every industry out there. I don't see how avoiding palm oil will solve any problems but good luck finding something better than Earth Balance.

 

[Calliegirl]

I like using unhydrogenated coconut oil. Yakherder had mentioned it on VB, and then I ended up getting some for my parrots (health benefits). The only drawback is keeping it at a temp where it's spreadable instead of rock solid or liquid. It's delicious though.

Does it have a strong coconut taste?

Unfortunately, there's going to be corruption in every industry out there. I don't see how avoiding palm oil will solve any problems but good luck finding something better than Earth Balance.

It isn't just a few isolated cases. Sadly, it's the entire industry.

Palm oil production has been documented as a cause of substantial and often irreversible damage to the natural environment.[62] Its impacts include:deforestation, habitat loss of critically endangered species such as the Orangutan[63][64][65][66] and Sumatran Tiger,[67][68] and a significant increase ingreenhouse gas emissions.[69] The pollution is exacerbated because many rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia[70] lie atop peat bogs that store great quantities of carbon that are released when the forests are cut down and the bogs drained to make way for plantations. Environmental groups such asGreenpeace and Rainforest-Rescue claim that the deforestation caused by making way for oil palm plantations is far more damaging for the climate than the benefits gained by switching to biofuel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil
I know its Wikipedia, but it's still accurate information.

 

[mlp]

It's not just a matter of corruption:

Rising demand is driving owners to clear tropical forest to plant oil palms. According to UNEP,[5] at the current rate of intrusion into Indonesian national parks, it is likely that many protected rain forests will be severely degraded by 2012 through illegal hunting and trade, logging, and forest fires, including those associated with the rapid spread of palm oil plantations. There is growing concern that this will be harmful to the environment in several ways:

• Significant greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation, mainly in tropical areas, accounts for up to one-third of total anthropogenic CO2 emissions, and is a driver toward dangerous climate change.[6]
• Habitat destruction, leading to the demise of critically endangered species (e.g. the Sumatran tiger,[7] the Asian rhinoceros,[8] and the Sumatran Orangutan.)[9][10][11][12][13][14]

• Reduced biodiversity,[15] including damage to biodiversity hotspots.[13][16]
• Destruction of cash crops, such as fruit and rubber trees in Sarawak, Sabah and Kalimantan and Borneo, that belong to indigenous peoples (the Dayak), despite their frequent objections.[

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_palm_oil

 

[mlp]

Calliegirl, it has a coconutty taste, but it's a really clear, clean taste IMO, not overwhelming.

Maybe Yakherder will see this thread - he's been using it for a while, if I remember correctly.

 

[KLS52]

I'm going to have to give this (coconut oil) a try. I consume HUGE amounts of EB and only just recently learned about palm oil. I really would like to at least significantly reduce the amount I use, if not cut it out altogether. I saw a recipe somewhere on how to make it without palm oil...I'm going to have to search for it. If I find it I'll post it here.

 

[Danielle]

That's very sad, but why can't Earth Balance just be made without palm oil?

 

[RabbitLuvr]

That's very sad, but why can't Earth Balance just be made without palm oil?

It probably *can* be made without the palm oil, but as far as I can tell, the company has no intention of changing to a palm oil-free recipe.

 

[thefadedone]

Smart Balance makes products that are vegan and free of palm oil.

http://vegetarian.about.com/gi/o.ht...13&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http://www.smartbalance.com/

 

[Dedalus]

Okay what's up with the 'show' button not working? It's there - but I didn't have to click it to see the pics, they were just there. Not a good start to the day -

******* humans.

 

[Dedalus]

Here is what we use:

http://bringittomeusa.com/index.php...-buttery-spread-with-olive-oil-15-oz-tub.html

Quick Overview
No trans fats; no partially hydrogenated oils; no palm kernel oils;

 

[Doktormartini]

I just use coconut oil if I use oil. It's the healthiest option (other than maybe cold press olive oil). I'm trying to stay away from oils and do the low fat raw vegan thing but if I use oils it's coconut.

 

[Doktormartini]

Here is what we use:

http://bringittomeusa.com/index.php...-buttery-spread-with-olive-oil-15-oz-tub.html

Quick Overview
No trans fats; no partially hydrogenated oils; no palm kernel oils;

I'm assuming the OP is using Earth Balance now because they are vegan? Well the buttery spread you linked to has D3 which isn't vegan:
WATER, NATURAL OIL BLEND (SOYBEAN AND PALM FRUIT AND EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OILS), CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% SALT, PROTEIN, NATURAL FLAVOR, MONOGLYCERIDES OF VEGETABLE FATTY ACIDS, SORBITAN ESTER OF VEGETABLE FATTY ACIDS, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, DL-a-TOCOPHERYL ACETATE (VITAMIN E), BETA CAROTENE COLOR, VITAMIN D3, LACTIC ACID, POTASSIUM SORBATE, CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA TO PROTECT FRESHNESS.

and also EDTA which:
EDTA is in such widespread use that it has emerged as a persistent organic pollutant.[23] It degrades to ethylenediaminetriacetic acid, which then cyclizes to the diketopiperizide, a cumulative, persistent, organic environmental pollutant. An alternative chelating agent with fewer environmental pollution implications is EDDS.
EDTA exhibits low acute toxicity with LD50 (rat) of 2.0 – 2.2 g/kg.[3] It has been found to be both cytotoxic and weakly genotoxic in laboratory animals. Oral exposures have been noted to cause reproductive and developmental effects.[9] The same study by Lanigan[9] also found that both dermal exposure to EDTA in most cosmetic formulations and inhalation exposure to EDTA in aerosolized cosmetic formulations would produce exposure levels below those seen to be toxic in oral dosing studies.

Not to mention it contains Palm Oil which is what the OP is trying to avoid...

 

[Calliegirl]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.

I'll look into the coconut oil and the Smart Balance, although I don't really like the flavor of SB very much.

 

[shyvas]

Seeing such a photo of a poor innocent animal, just makes you realise the harsh reality of what we are doing to our planet. I didn't realise that so many animals were being killed due the intense farming of po.

It just makes you wonder how come that there are no laws protecting them from being tortured and burnt ?

I certainly will stop buying the vegan spread that I have been buying for ages as it also contains po. Apparently there are a few others which do not contain dairy or po.

Thank you for posting this.

http://www.lifewithoutpalmoil.org/2011/11/shocking-truth-about-palm-oil.html

 

[Danielle]

I went on their website and found this. Thoughts?
Q: I’ve heard talk about palm oil and sustainability. Where does Earth Balance source its palm oil?
A: 30% of our palm oil comes from Brazil, which is the source we use in all of our organic products. The remaining 70% is sourced from peninsular Malaysia where all of our suppliers are members of RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil), the leading global organization developing and implementing global standards for sustainable palm oil production. All palm oil sourced from these suppliers comes only from existing palm plantations, not new jungle-clearing projects. We insist on continuing assurances from our suppliers that all palm fruit oil purchased for Earth Balance complies with the RSPO policies and we would not hesitate to terminate suppliers that violate these policies. More info on RSPO is available at www.rspo.org.
Q: Is Earth Balance taking any other sustainable palm oil initiatives?
A: Earth Balance has purchased GreenPalm Certificates for 2012 production to fund the growth and expansion of sustainable palm, and it is our intention to do the same going forward. These certificates work like green energy credits and the money paid for the certificate goes directly to improving the infrastructure and practices behind sustainable palm. We believe the current global focus on making palm oil sustainable, through programs like GreenPalm, will inevitably create a supply chain that is exclusively sustainable, hopefully within the next five or so years.
Additionally, Earth Balance partners with Orangutan Foundation International (OFI), a non-governmental organization that is dedicated to the conservation of wild orangutans and their rainforest habitat. To learn more about OFI, visitwww.orangutan.org.
ETA: Seriously? No comments? :I No one is going to tell me if they still think it's unethical to use Earth Balance or not? I would really like to know.

 

[FortyTwo]

I'm assuming the OP is using Earth Balance now because they are vegan? Well the buttery spread you linked to has D3 which isn't vegan:
WATER, NATURAL OIL BLEND (SOYBEAN AND PALM FRUIT AND EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OILS), CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% SALT, PROTEIN, NATURAL FLAVOR, MONOGLYCERIDES OF VEGETABLE FATTY ACIDS, SORBITAN ESTER OF VEGETABLE FATTY ACIDS, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, DL-a-TOCOPHERYL ACETATE (VITAMIN E), BETA CAROTENE COLOR, VITAMIN D3, LACTIC ACID, POTASSIUM SORBATE, CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA TO PROTECT FRESHNESS.

and also EDTA which:
EDTA is in such widespread use that it has emerged as a persistent organic pollutant.[23] It degrades to ethylenediaminetriacetic acid, which then cyclizes to the diketopiperizide, a cumulative, persistent, organic environmental pollutant. An alternative chelating agent with fewer environmental pollution implications is EDDS.
EDTA exhibits low acute toxicity with LD50 (rat) of 2.0 – 2.2 g/kg.[3] It has been found to be both cytotoxic and weakly genotoxic in laboratory animals. Oral exposures have been noted to cause reproductive and developmental effects.[9] The same study by Lanigan[9] also found that both dermal exposure to EDTA in most cosmetic formulations and inhalation exposure to EDTA in aerosolized cosmetic formulations would produce exposure levels below those seen to be toxic in oral dosing studies.

Not to mention it contains Palm Oil which is what the OP is trying to avoid...

Urgh, D3 is a disaster. I keep having to look up the various ways it's chemically referred to on food packaging because it's in freakin' everything.

 

[Calliegirl]

Urgh, D3 is a disaster. I keep having to look up the various ways it's chemically referred to on food packaging because it's in freakin' everything.

I wrote to a company that uses a lot of D3 and asked why they used it, and if it was a cost issue. I also suggested they switch to D2 which will open up their products to a lot more people. They wrote back and said they do have the choice of using D2 or D3, but didn't say why they choose the D3. They said they would take what I said into consideration, but it looked like a standard form letter, so I doubt they'll do anything.