Top U.S. free-from brand, Enjoy Life Foods, has become the first food company in the country to receive a Palm Oil Free Certification. The new Grain & Seed Bars, as well as Protein Bites launching in June, are the first products to receive the certification.
The International Palm Oil Free Certification Trademark & Accreditation Programme is a female-led, non-profit certification programme, currently approved to certify products and companies in nine countries around the globe. The organization aims to help consumers “who wish to avoid palm oil for allergy, dietary or ethical reasons, to see at a quick glance if a product is palm oil free.”
Bev Luff, the Program Manager for the programme, is proud to partner with Enjoy Life Foods. “Enjoy Life Foods’ track record as a credible leader in the food industry makes us proud to call them our first partner in the U.S. market,” Luff said in a statement. She added, “we’re excited to continue expanding our mission in the U.S. and beyond, just as we have in Australia and the U.K.”
Enjoy Life Foods’ range is not yet all vegan though. It currently boasts 90 percent verified vegan products and says it is keen to spread the message about the impact that palm oil has on the planet. “Palm oil is one of the most commonly used ingredients in U.S. food products, and as awareness of the devastating impact its conventional production has on our planet continues to grow, we feel it’s important to lead by example,” said Joel Warady, General Manager and Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Enjoy Life Foods “We believe that we can take our quest for sustainability to the next level.”
Palm oil is a type of vegetable oil harvested from palm trees predominantly across Indonesia and Malaysia. Animals such as orangutans, crocodiles, pygmy elephants, and many others are negatively affected by the environmental destruction demand for the product causes.
Major UK supermarket chain, Iceland, recently announced plans to phase out the ingredient altogether from all its products.
“We don’t believe there is such a thing as guaranteed ‘sustainable’ palm oil available in the mass market, so we are giving consumers a choice to say no to palm for the first time,” Iceland’s Managing Director recently said in a statement.
Image Credit: Enjoy Life Foods
