Health concerns have led to a shift in consumption, with a government-favoured agricultural sector poised to benefitA supermarket clerk stocks the cooking oil shelf with palm oil. (Photo by Jiraporn Kuhakan)The proposed ban on trans fat will force restaurants and cooking oil makers to modify their products, but the change may be a boon to the palm oil sector, an industry heavily supported by the government's Palm Oil and Palm Oil Industries Development Strategy. Thailand is already the third-largest palm oil producer in the world, and an increase in palm oil demand could have important effects in the local economy. Initially concentrated in southern Thailand, palm oil production has expanded to the northern and central parts of the country, according to Krungsri Research. The ban on trans fat may reinforce the government's Palm Oil and Palm Oil Industries Development Strategy for 2015-26, which aims to increase palm oil plantation by 3 million rai and expand production to 21 million tonnes.

Source: Bangkok Post January 03, 2018 21:56 UTC