Health : Ad War Heats Up on Palm Oil Claims

An advertising battle over the health effects of imported palm oil widened today, with a palm-oil producers group launching a campaign to defend against claims their product raises cholesterol levels.

The full-page ad that began running in major newspapers today urges consumers “not to be intimidated by scare tactics and statements which are not based on scientific evidence.” Palm oil and other “tropical oils” such as coconut and palm kernel oils have been criticized as contributors to heart disease in ads placed by an Omaha businessman and by American soybean growers, who compete for vegetable oil markets with palm growers.