Butter is a dairy product made from milk or cream. It consists of 80% milk fat and often comes in a salted and unsalted varieties. However, due to the high amount of milk fat, butter often contains high levels of saturated fats.
Margarine is mainly made up of a blend of water and oils which may include sunflower, canola, olive and palm oils and some small ingredients. Typically, other ingredients are added including salt, colours, flavours, vitamins (A and D) and animal derived ingredients such as milk, buttermilk powder or whey. These dairy ingredients are usually added to achieve a creamy or buttery flavour and to improve the mouthfeel of the margarine.
The main difference between Butter and Margarine is the type of fat they contain; butter uses a milk derived fat, resulting in higher level of saturated fats compared to margarine.
Flora’s Original and Salt Reduced margarine has 65% less saturated fat than Butter and Flora Light margarine has 75% less saturated fat than butter. Hence providing a healthier alternative to butter for those who watch their saturated fat intake.
All Flora and Flora ProActiv margarines contain milk solids or buttermilk for the reasons stated above.