Bunge India seeks to clear 'unhealthy' tag from vanaspati

The Indian arm of global agribusiness and food company, Bunge, on Thursday said it is seeking to clear the "unhealthy" tag from vanaspati to reach health-conscious families that have switched to other options and announced that the edible oil sold under the brand name Dalda is now trans fat-free.

Trans fat, a form of unsaturated fat associated with a number of negative health effects, is the key reason for which consumers have switched to healthier options in place of vanaspati.

Bunge acquired the 75-year-old iconic Dalda brand in 2003 from Unilever.

“We have been reducing the trans fat level in Dalda gradually and now we have achieved to bring it below one per cent from three per cent in the recent past. According to Indian food standard norms, if it is below one per cent, it can be called trans fat free."

"We have done this without impacting the traditional taste,” Bunge India General Manager (marketing) Milind Acharya said.

He said the company is also working to make its other vanaspati brands such as Gagan trans fat free to better its market share in the overall edible oil market.

He claimed that Bunge India commands around 47 per cent market share in the country's vanaspati market but did not reveal other financial details.

Vanaspati currently commands around 10 per cent of the total edible oil market of India.

Acharya acknowledged that the absolute volume of vanaspati had not shrunk, but in percentage terms it has come down over the past many years.

Vanaspati is the cheaper option compared to ghee and used by the mass market due to affordability but with inflation, prices had shot up in excess of 60 per cent in the past few months.