Butter Makes Comeback as Margarine Loses Favor

Butter's shifting fortunes also reflect the vicissitudes of thinking on healthy eating that rattle the national diet. Families for decades opted for vegetable spreads because of concerns about butter's high concentration of saturated fat, only to be told more recently that the trans fats traditionally contained in margarine are just as unhealthy. Many Americans also have altered their thinking on how important reducing all fat is for controlling weight.

Butter vs. Margarine

The truth is, there never was any good evidence that using margarine instead of butter cut the chances of having a heart attack or developing heart disease. Making the switch was a well-intentioned guess, given that margarine had less saturated fat than butter, but it overlooked the dangers of trans fats.

Butter vs. Margarine--Which Side Are You On?

There are definitely two types of healthy eaters: Those in the all-natural, nothing-artificial, a-little-butter-isn't-going-to-kill-me camp, and those who love their margarine because it's lower in fat, especially saturated fat. What side are you on?

Health Check: is margarine actually better for me than butter?

Only 20 years ago butter was the public villain – contributing to raised cholesterol levels and public concern over an increased risk of heart disease. Now this public perception seems to have been reversed, and reality cooking shows seem to use butter in every recipe. But what has caused this shift in perceptions and is it based on scientific evidence?

I can't believe it's not … healthy!

Hydrogenation involves mixing vegetable oils with a metal catalyst and heating them to high temperatures. Hydrogen gas is then pumped through the hot oil in a high-pressure reactor. Fully hydrogenated fat is incredibly hard, like plastic beads, but the process can be stopped part-way when manufacturers want oils that are still soft but more stable, and it is this partial hydrogenation that creates trans fats...

Margarine v butter: are synthetic spreads toast?

Sales of margarine are in decline, due to a combination of reformulated recipes, price, health and taste. Do you defend marge, or is butter simply better?

Margarine vs butter: how what we spread on our toast became a weapon of class war

Margarine has seen its fortunes ebb and flow with the tide of popular opinion. But Unilever’s recent announcement that it’s dropping the margarine brands Flora and Stork marks a new low point for the spread. It seems consumers are demanding the authentic article instead – even McDonalds has allegedly switched to butter.

Plant margarines to jumpstart your health and wellness goals in 2020

While some may argue that plant-based foods are overly processed and made with ingredients that consumers don’t understand, this doesn’t reflect how plant margarines are made today; where plant oils are churned with natural ingredients.

Plant-Based Butter Is Taking Over The Dairy Aisle

There are no major differences between margarine and plant-based butters, but the latter makes it clear to consumers there’s absolutely no animal produce in their products. While margarines are made up of vegetable fats, some include milk products. One of the main differences between plant-based alternatives and butter and margarine are the social and environmental values that come with the former.

Stomping the Margarine

Today margarine is a common grocery item, and many people prefer it to butter. However, it took time for margarine to gain a following in the United States, especially since it originally required more work in the kitchen than simply removing it from the refrigerator. When margarine first came to the U.S. in the 1870s, the butter substitute intrigued everyone—everyone except dairy farmers who worried about the impact it could have on their industry.

The 1870s Dairy Lobby Turned Margarine Pink So People Would Buy Butter

Butter and margarine have been fighting since the foodstuff was invented in 1869.

The Push to Make Fake Butter Cool (Again)

RIP 'margarine,' hello 'plant butter.'

What the margarine vs butter argument says about nutrition

Margarine and spread sales continue to outstrip butter sales. But, despite the continued promotion of margarine by many nutrition experts as a healthy spread, the long-term decline in butter sales has been reversed in recent years in Australia and other countries, while margarine sales are falling. It may be that many consumers are deciding they prefer the taste and “naturalness” of butter, either because they have discovered the highly processed character of margarine, or because they’re no longer deterred by the vilification of saturated fats.

What’s Better For You: Butter or Margarine?

Butter or margarine: which one is better? If you don’t have time to read the whole post I will summarize it for you in one sentence. Butter. But I do hope you read on to find out why!