The healthiest oil in the kitchen

The results indicated that Thai consumers rate health properties of cooking oils as a crucial prerequisite of usage, as well as highlighting a growing interest in the use of olive oil for Thai cooking.
The survey was conducted via the Bertolli Thailand Facebook page, based on 100 Thai respondents aged 18 to 65. The most commonly utilised cooking oil was palm oil at 25 per cent, followed by vegetable oil at 21.9 per cent and olive oil in third place with 18.8 per cent. The highest percentage (36.5 per cent) said they use olive oil because they believe it to be healthy.
 A strong health focus was revealed within the survey findings and repeated throughout, with 54.2 per cent of respondents saying they had eaten olive oil previously for health reasons, and 78.7 per cent saying that the health benefits of olive oil would be the most likely reason to persuade them to switch cooking oils. When quizzed if they would purchase a particular oil because it was healthier than other oils, a resounding 51.6 per cent said “yes, healthy food is important to them.” Interestingly, only 1.1 percent said oil taste is more important than health.
The highest percentage of people (59.4 per cent) said olive oil can be used to cook local Thai cuisine, followed by 20.8 per cent saying they’d never tried, but only 3.1 per cent saying olive oil cannot cook Thai dishes.
Another interesting finding covered the reuse of cooking oils in Thai households. It was almost an equal split between the 43.8 per cent of respondents that said they never reuse any oils, because it’s bad – and the 44.8 per cent who said they sometimes reused oil.  In fact, Bertolli Thailand says that olive oil can be reused two to three times, per the food and ingredients and if you strain after each usage.
 “For Bertolli Thailand it’s important that we truly understand our Thai consumers, and see what is important for them when buying and using a cooking oil. It’s encouraging to see that health has become a key trigger point for oil usage and we are proud to have a product that supports this with health benefits such as lowering LDL cholesterol levels and minimizing the risk of heart disease,” says Guy MunzJones, managing director Asia Pacific, Bertolli Global. “We are additionally happy to see that many Thai consumers know that olive oil blends seamlessly with all Thai cooking and cuisine.”