Major technical and regulatory challenges need to be overcome if manufacturers are to achieve Food Standards Agency (FSA) targets for reducing saturated fat intakes, according to the expert it commissioned to assess the feasibility of its plans.
For many products, it was "simply impossible" to replace a solid fat with a liquid oil with lower saturates, which meant that the focus had to be on identifying healthier solid fats, said independent 'fat consultant' Geoff Talbot.
However, this was beset with problems, said Talbot, who has 35 years' experience in oils and fats technology at companies including Unilever and Loders Croklaan. "There are constraints, notably development and material costs; the need to use technology which may be considered 'unacceptable' such as complete hydrogenation; and the use of fatty acids and glyceride structures not normally found in nature, which would be subject to the European Novel Food Regulation." Where suitable alternatives to oils or fats with high levels of saturates had been found, availability was also an issue, he claimed. For example, a wholesale switch to frying oils with lower-saturates would be impossible in the short term due to poor availability of lower-saturated oils such as high oleic sunflower oil used by Walkers.
Meanwhile, reducing fat in pastry and bakery products typically involved the use of additives such as emulsifiers to get the correct texture and structure and preservatives to ensure sufficient microbiologically stable shelf-life if water activity were increased as a result of fat reduction, he claimed. "Significant research" was therefore needed to define ways of reducing saturated fat in these types of products.
Fat reductions in processed meats were possible, but tended to negatively affect texture and succulence, he added. The FSA aims to reduce saturated fat intakes from 13.4% to below 11% of food energy by 2010.