Why is there a sunflower oil shortage and what can I use instead?

Michael Le Page is a person.

A shortage of sunflower oil is one of the consequences of Russia's attack on Ukraine. Restaurants in Germany have stopped selling chips because cooking oil is hard to find. Here is what you need to know.

Why are supplies of sunflower oil running low in some countries?

Most of the sunflower oil exports come from Russia and Ukraine. Ievgen Osypov at trading company Kernel said that exports from Ukraine have fallen 95 per cent. Russia will impose a quota on oil exports from April 15.

Can’t we just use other vegetable oils instead?

Many food producers are doing this. Global vegetable oil prices were already at an all-time high before the war, and increased demand for other oils is driving up their prices even further. Thomas Alcock at the Technical University of Munich in Germany says that palm oil is likely to be the main substitute globally.

Why were prices already so high?

A combination of rising demand due to people becoming wealthier and the growing use of vegetable oils as biofuels, and supply issues related to the pandemic and extreme weather. Last year, extreme heat in Canada hit rapeseed yields.

Can anything be done to relieve the shortage?

Yes. Around 15 per cent of vegetable oils are turned into fuels. The European Union converts 3.5 million tonnes of palm oil into biodiesel each year, which is equivalent to the amount of oil exported by Russia and Ukraine. The amount of food available for use could increase if the subsidies are stopped.

How long will prices stay high?

No one can say for certain, as it depends on everything from what happens in Ukraine to what other countries do. It remains to be seen how much can be exported from Ukraine, as Osypov estimates that the country will produce 40 per cent less this year.

Are alternative oils more or less healthy?

Saturated fats are thought to be bad for us. Rapeseed oil is lower in saturated fats than other vegetable oils, while palm oil is significantly higher. It is difficult to measure the health effects of vegetable oils.

Is sunflower oil especially good for frying?

While some oils can be heated to higher temperatures before they start smoking, sunflower oil is high in polyunsaturated fats that break down into compounds such as aldehydes. These compounds are bad for your health.

Which oils are best for cooking, then?

Monosaturated and saturated fats are more heat-stable. Rapeseed and olive oil have high levels of monounsaturated fats. The use of conventional breeding and genetic modification has resulted in the creation of soy, safflower, and sunflowers with higher levels of oleic acid. Some food companies use high-oleic oils for deep frying because the oil doesn't have to be changed as often.

Is the substitution of other oils such as rapeseed a problem for people with allergies?

Some people have an allergic reaction to the pollen of rapeseed. There shouldn't be any pollen in refined rapeseed oil. The risk of severe allergic reactions is negligible according to the UK Food Standards Agency.

Are alternative oils more or less environmentally friendly?

According to a recent study by Alcock, the average amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted per kilogram of oil produced is almost three times the amount emitted by humans. It is 2.5 kilo for rapeseed oil, 3.7 kilo for palm oil and 4.3 kilo for soybean oil. He says that the main factor in determining emissions is where crops are grown and where rainforests have been cut down.