Few of us cook with palm oil or have ever even seen the stuff. Nevertheless, 50% of all packaged grocery items – everything from ice cream and pizza to detergents and cosmetics – include it as an ingredient. The global market for palm oil was $65 billion in 2015, and that number was projected to grow by more than 7% each year through 2021.
A group of more than 200 scientists and medical professionals has issued a consensus statement in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives urging that antimicrobial chemicals like triclosan and triclocarban should not be used in consumer products. The experts say that these substances offer no health benefits and are actually causing health and environmental harm.
