Source: Australian Food News

The Senate has passed an amendment to the Food Act requiring that products containing palm oil be explicitly labelled, rather than described as ‘vegetable oil’.

The bill was passed by Coalition votes, and driven by Greens senator Rachael Siewert and Independent senator Nick Xenophon, both of whom have been vocal in their campaigns on the subject of palm oil.

Most of the world’s supply of palm oil, an extremely common ingredient in foods and food additives, is produced in Malaysia and Indonesia, where it is common practice to clearfell forest for plantations. Zoos Victoria reports that clearfelling results in the deaths of up to 50 orangutans per week.

The issue came to prominence last year, after a grisly ad from Greenpeace featured orangutan fingers in a Kit Kat wrapper.

Senator Xenophon also emphasised the consumer health aspect of the labelling, saying that Australians consume 10kg of palm oil a year without knowing it, and that while other products labelled as ‘vegetable oil’ contain as little as 2% saturated fat, palm oil is 50% saturated fat.

While the bill was rejected last week by a Senate committee, the alliance between the Opposition and the two senators was enough to pass the bill, which will likely pass in the House of Representatives if the Coalition-Greens alliance holds.

To read the full story, follow this link: www.ausfoodnews.com.au/2011/06/24/senate-passes-palm-oil-labelling-bill.html