7/22/2004 (Business Wire) PALO ALTO, Calif.-- Reacting to the obesityepidemic, food consumers have stirred a global health revolution and areincreasingly demanding healthier oils and fats. Since eliminating fats canupset the nutritional balance, researchers are constantly trying todevelop innovative methods to improve the health properties of oils andfats.

Though fats and edible oils are largely to blame for obesity and otherrelated health issues, they are integral to a balanced diet and assist inthe absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. This is driving the R&D effortstoward reduced fat and lower calorie foods without altering traditionaleating habits.

"Fat-based replacers are gradually gaining momentum in the market sincethey produce fats that eliminate extra calories while retaining theessential fatty acids, as well as the texture and flavor found intraditionally used fats," explain Technical Insights Research Analyst AnilNaidu.

Olestra recently entered the fat substitutes market after resolving healthissues surrounding its consumption and gaining approval from the Food andDrug Administration (FDA). Another breakthrough in the search for low-fatpalatable foods is the development of fat-free cream cheese with thefirmness, flavor, and texture of regular cream cheese.

Since spreads are major sources of dietary fat and extremely popular amongconsumers, researchers are taking active steps to reduce their fat contentby replacing sweeteners with corn syrup. Corn syrup spreads are low in fatand calories and they do not compromise on the flavor.

Peanut butter is also extremely high in calories since about 50 percent ofit is oils while the rest is solid nut particles. Partly replacing nutsolids with corn syrup solids creates a more healthy spread that has atleast 50 percent less fat and 33 percent less calories than regular peanutbutter.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have become a controversial issueespecially in the European Union. In fact, they have introduced a new"Biotech Label Law" that mandates labeling of food products and animalfeed containing more than 0.9 percent of GMOs. However, the increasingacreage of biotech crops worldwide points to the growing acceptance of GMseeds.

"Genetically modified seeds address the concerns pertaining to the amountof linolenic acids and free fatty acids in oils and offer many advantagessuch as high yield, better product shelf life, and a decreased usage ofcrop protection chemicals," explains Technical Insights Research AnalystKasturi Nadkarny.

There is also a growing need to educate consumers regarding saturated ortrans-fats. To address this issue, the FDA has announced regulations thatenforce mandatory labeling of food products containing trans-fats.

"Labeling laws create a more educated consumer who has the opportunity toturn to healthier alternatives such as olive oil and make informeddecisions after considering the inherent risks in certain foods," saysNaidu.

The labeling legislations also serve as a wake-up call to the foodmanufacturers to reexamine and even reformulate their ingredients. Itsimultaneously offers a good market opportunity for healthy oils and fats,resulting in the search for new or altered processing methods andalternative fats and oils ingredients.

Following this trend, the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S.Department of Agriculture has discovered new breeds of corn to createcooking oils and margarine that lower blood cholesterol. Another new blendof cooking oils has the potential to heighten the metabolic rate inhumans, thereby lowering cholesterol level by about 13 percent.

"Margarine spreads containing natural plant sterols are formulated in sucha way that they contain less cholesterol-raising saturated fat and morecholesterol-reducing polyunsaturated fat and could also reduce cholesterolalmost up to 10 percent within three weeks," concludes Nadkarny.

Edible Oils and Fats: A Global Overview of Technological Developments,part of the Oleochemicals, Surfactants and Specialty Chemicals IndustryVertical Subscription Service, provides a comprehensive analysis ofemerging technological developments in the manufacture of edible oils andfats. It analyzes key technical challenges and drivers influencing growthand provides in-depth examination of cutting-edge developments. Executivesummaries and interviews are available to the press.

If you are interested in an analysis overview which provide manufacturers,end-users and other industry participants an overview, summary, challengesand latest coverage of Edible Oils and Fats: A Global Overview ofTechnological Developments - then send an email to Julia Paulson - NorthAmerican Corporate Communications at jpaulson@frost.com with the followinginformation: Full name, Company Name, Title, Contact Tel Number, ContactFax Number, Email. Upon receipt of the above information, an overview willbe emailed to you.

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