Unilever Australasia - FLORA PRO-ACTIV

Get pro-active

For more than 40 years Unilever has played a leading role in helping consumers maintain healthy hearts. Recognising Unilever as a world leader in nutritional research, the medical profession asked the company to create a healthy alternative to butter, lard and hard margarines. As a result our Flora spreads were born. Further developments have resulted in Flora pro-activ, clinically proven to reduce the absorption of cholesterol. Unilever is working with the World Heart Federation (WHF) to raise awareness of heart disease around the world and promote sales of the company's brands that contribute to a healthy lifestyle. Joint initiatives between Unilever companies and national heart charities form part of this global partnership.

Did you know

• About 17 million people die of cardiovascular disease, particularly heart attack and stroke every year.*1 
• Cardiovascular disease is still the number one killer in Australia and New Zealand, causing around 40% of all deaths*. 2,3
• High cholesterol causes a third of all cardiovascular disease worldwide*.1 
• In Australia, one in two adults has high blood cholesterol and this figure has not changed in 20 years.* 2
• By 2020, heart disease and stroke will become the leading cause of death and disability worldwide, with the number of fatalities likely to reach more than 20 million a year and by 2030 the figure will rise to more than 24 million a year*.1 

• Studies estimate that on average a 10% lowering of cholesterol will reduce the risk of coronary heart disease by up to 20%*. 4

1.WHO, The Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke2004 

2. Australian Institute of Health & Welfare (AIHW) 2004. Heart, stroke and vascular diseases – Australian facts 2004. 

3. Hay DR. Cardiovascular Disease in New Zealand 2004. Technical Report No.82, October 2004.

4.Tolonen H et al. Prevalence, awareness and treatment of hypercholesterolaemia in 32 populations: results from the Who Monica Project. Int J Epidemiol 2005;34(1):181-192.

Key facts

• Unilever is the world's leading manufacturer of oil-based spreads. 
• About 12 million people around the world consume Flora products. 
• Flora pro-activ has been approved by regulators in more than 20 countries. 
• The use of plant sterol spreads has been supported by key scientists and healthcare professionals worldwide. 
• A program of scientific research has established that the plant sterols used in Flora pro-activ, which help lower cholesterol absorption, are safe and effective. 
• Flora pro-activ is the world’s best-selling cholesterol-lowering food brand.                     

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