Butter and margarine: what’s the difference?

By Kit Chapman2023-04-27T05:02:00

Source: © Photoevent/iStock/Getty Images

Discover the chemistry and history of these so similar, but very different solidified emulsions

Butter and margarine are both solidified emulsions of fats in water; butter is produced from milk, and margarine is produced from vegetable oil. But the science and history of these two kitchen staples are far more complicated. Read on to discover the chemistry of the two spreads, why margarine had to be dyed bright pink in some US states, and how a huge network of yellow margarine smugglers came to be.

Use the Everyday chemistry article to provide context to your learners and make cross-curricular links when teaching separation techniques, melting points and saturated compounds too.

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