"transfats" news and stories

Soon, New York City might not be the only place in the country with a ban on trans-fats in restaurants. The Washington State Board of Health and Public Health commended the NY Board of Health and said that the ban "is a step in the right direction and is boosting awareness of the ingredient's link to heart disease and stroke." They will spend the next several months conducting their own studies to see whether or not to follow suit and ban the use of trans fats in the state.

The biggest issue holding them back from making the decision at this point is whether or not a change could drive small companies out of business. The National Restaurant Association has raised concerns in the past over whether the demand for trans-fat free oils will meet the growing demand, saying that the deadlines imposed by the NY Board of Health could cause restaurant owners, especially small ones, to pay a premium for the oils just to meet them, while larger restaurants will have the clout to work out more equitable deals with suppliers.

Many Seattle restaurants and smaller chains have already shifted to trans-fat free products, or are in the process of doing so. They say that it is an important issue to their customer base and they want to make them happy. The fact that these changes are already taking place could encourage the Board of Health to move forward with the issue.

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When I read the article in the New York Times where a chef tested Crisco, coconut oil and other fats for frying and baking, I was very surprised to hear that Crisco came out on top in just about every test. I'm familiar with how shortening works, so it wasn't the performance that surprised me, rather it was the fact that there was not a crowd of foodies (or at least readers of Gourmet magazine) outside the test kitchen complaining that an all-shortening tarte tatin, which usually has a very buttery puff-pastry base, beat out butter. Butter unquestionably tastes better, especially in such a simple dish, and the only way to really screw it up is if you have a lot of difficulty working with pastry in general. To get a "firm and crumbly" crust with butter, it sounds like the testing chef seriously overworked his dough.

But to get back to the main point, the thing that was really surprising was not the tarte tatin result, but the fact that they didn't consider testing trans-fat free Crisco in addition to regular Crisco. Surely a taste test that pitted this against an alternative with trans-fats would have been more useful to professional and non-professional chefs alike! Crisco Zero has been on the market for about a year and a half now. It's not quite as widely available as regular Crisco, but it can usually be found at regular grocery stores. It offers the same performance - resulting, for example, in a flaky pie crust - but does not have any trans fats per serving. I've used it before with good results and it seems like a potential alternative for chefs trying to reconfigure their recipes to exclude trans-fats.

It's official. New York City has become the first in the nation to ban the use trans-fats at restaurants. The members of the Board of Health voted unanimously for the ban and heath advocates are already applauding the decision. Restaurants will have until July 2007 to switch to trans-fat free frying oils - meaning that all french fries in the city, as well as other fried foods will have to be trans-fat free by that time - and will have until July 2008 to remove all trans-fats from their food.

Trans-fats, which have been called "chemical abominations" by some health officials, are known to raise bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol, changes which can contribute to an increased risk of heart disease. According to FDA estimates, "the average American eats 4.7 pounds of trans fats each year" in spite of the reductions that food processors have made with their use. They are favored in the restaurant and food processing industries because they are easy to work with, have a long shelf life and can increase the shelf life of foods that use them.

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Last Sunday, the Opinion section of the Boston Globe featured a rather passionate piece by Christopher Kimball, founder of Cook's Illustrated. Kimball rails against processed foods, saying that the often expensive and unhealthy products have infiltrated the food industry "like a cancer." The main points of Kimball's piece--trans fats, relentless marketing and the economic impact of obesity in America--won't come as a shock to most of us. Still, Cook's fans should appreciate hearing Kimball speak his mind about something a little more controversial than Dutch process cocoa. (Registration with Boston.com maybe required.)

[Via The Ethicurean]

UK supermarket Sainsbury's is taking action on trans fats and flavour enhancers by removing them from its own-label processed food and drinks.

The chain plans to phase out the additives - it has 15,000 own-brand lines - by the end of next January. Trans-fats are of coursed linked to to increased cholesterol levels and a greater risk of coronary heart disease. Tesco is a little ahead in aiming for a similar removal by the end of the year. Marks & Spencer has already stopped using hydrogenated vegetable oils – the base for trans fats –in its food production.

Trans fats have received a lot of attention in the UK of late. While they occur naturally in some meat and dairy products their main source is manufactured foods. Health representatives are calling for proper labeling highlighting them in foods such as margarine, chips, biscuits and so on.

High levels are found in KFC Colonel's regular crispy strips and fries (4.4g/portion), McDonald's McNuggets and regular fries (3g), Saxby's fresh ready rolled short pastry (2.5g), Burger King Whopper and regular fries (2.3g) and Sainsbury's puff pastry minced beef & onion pie (1.8g)

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