In six months' time, Thai consumers are to be protected from bad food ingredients known as trans fats.
This month, the Public Health Ministry took the bold step to prohibit the use of these kinds of fat which are blamed for increasing the risk of heart disease or strokes. They are also associated with a higher risk of developing type-2 diabetes. The ministry has gazetted new regulations that ban the production, import and distribution of food containing trans fats. The ban takes effect in January.
Trans fatty acids, which result from partially hydrogenated oils, are commonly found in cakes, pies and cookies, margarine, crackers, cream-filled sweets, doughnuts, fried fast foods and frozen pizza, as well as food ingredients like margarine.
