News

Taking another run at butter

In an effort to reclaim some of the market it lost to butter: Unilever has rolled-out a new “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter” original spread.  The vegetable oil-based spreads took a beating when it was found the heating of partially hydrogenated oils created trans fats.  Though the PHOs are no longer in the products, they are struggling to shake the “highly processed” image with consumers.  Butter is seen as more natural and has seen per capita consumption grow from 4.1 pounds in 1997 to 5.6 pounds in 2012.

Not only has Unilever removed the PHOs, they have also taken out any ingredients that shoppers would not easily recognize.  Unilever has developed a proprietary cool-blending technology which allows them to eliminate mono and di-glycerides used as emulsifiers as well as EDTA and potassium sorbate preservatives.

The new formula is 45 percent vegetable oil from palm oil and non-GMO soybeans.  The label will include a disclaimer that a small amount of GM oils could be in the product due to a lack of segregation in the supply chain.  Unilever VP Foods, North America Mike Faherty says they plan to remove that disclaimer as new technology and equipment become fully segregated.  Unilever supports the use of genetically modified crops but Faherty tells Food Navigator; “We know that the I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter consumer finds certain offerings, such as non-GMO-sourced ingredients compelling.”