Palm Olein Possibilities for Trans-Free Oil Blends

PENANG, MalaysiaAs food formulators seek to find healthier alternatives to trans-fat-containing partially hydrogenated oils that supply needed functionality, they increasingly turn to blends, many of which contain palm oil. A recent investigation of the properties of mixtures of common oils with palm oil olein by Malaysian scientists is providing information to help develop a wider range of trans-free options.

Hydrogenation is a method used to change the properties of liquid oils so they can be used in a wide variety of food applications, from baked goods to fried foods. However, it produces a significant level of unhealthy trans fatty acids. The right oil for a given application depends on chemical properties like iodine value, peroxide value, p-anisidine value, acidity etc, as well as certain physical properties like viscosity, solidification temperature and solid fat index, color, and appearanceall of which need to be considered when choosing a trans-free replacement.

Researchers at School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia set out to find the change in physical and chemical properties of vegetable oils such as palm olein, canola oil, sunflower oil and soybean oil when they are blended in different mixing ratios. They wanted to find a blend of oxidatively stable palm olein that has a low melting point by adding vegetable oils with high degrees of unsaturation.

They evaluated the physico-chemical properties, such as viscosity, density, melting behavior, peroxide value, saponification value and iodine value of four different blends with four vegetable oils. The data showed that palm olein was more stable against rancidity than the other oils. The palm olein-canola blend performed better than the others in measurements of stability against oxidation and meltin-point depression . Measuring the melting behavior of the blends by differential scanning calorimeter thermogram found some new triglyceride polymorphs.

The researchers concluded that the findings will help the oil producing industry to find the most economically viable oil blends for cooking purposes, with maximum nutrition as well as desirable physico-chemical properties. Thus blending is a good choice by which we can manufacture edible oils of good characteristics and ensure their quality.