Palm oil became a thing when cheap, shelf stable fats in the form of partially hydrogenated oil were realized to be unhealthy. Instead of the world giving up the eternally fresh package of Oreos, we move to massive production of tropical oils which are also shelf stable. It's probably time to reevaluate if we can sustain our appetite for snacks using a very small amount of precious land in the tropics that can grow palm oil.

There are alternatives to Palm oil. The most straightforward is replacing it with rendered fat from pigs or cows (lard or tallow). This has its own ethics and environmental concerns. Another solution is to revisit oil hydrogenation. We can fully hydrogenate oils such as soybean into a saturated fat very similar to that found in tallow. The resulting fat is healthier than partially hydrogenated oil, and arguably healthier than unprocessed soy oil too. It is not difficult to work with and has a neutral flavors, which is desirable for the processed food industry. We just need to get over our fear of this process.