Applications of Palm-based Interesterified Fats

The physical characteristics of oils and fats are determined by their chemical properties, i.e., the chain length and unsaturation of the fatty acids as well as their distribution among the three hydroxyl groups of glycerol. By changing them through hydrogenation, fractionation, blending or interesterification (IE), the physical properties can be changed as well, hence, widening […]

Trans-Fatty Acids – An Update on its Regulatory Status

Trans fatty acids are unsaturated fatty acids containing at least one double bond in the trans configuration, formed when edible oils are partially hydrogenated. This process is normally done to increase the melting points of the fatty acids to enable liquid oils to be used in solid fats formulations such as margarines, shortenings, vanaspati and […]

Supply and Disappearance: A Review

Malaysian production of palm oil in the year 2003 continued to be on the up trend when it reached 13.35 million tonnes from 11.9 million tonnes in 2002, an increase of 1.4 million tonnes, or 12.14% (Table 1). Monthly movements in production for 2003 showed that production for the first two months of 2003 was […]

Prices of Selected Oils and Fats in 2003

The market for selected oils and fats has been bullish since 2001 as the prices of these oils and fats gradually accelerated until 2003. The average price of refined bleached deodorized (RBD) palm olein increased from US$ 317 t-1 in 2001 to US$ 485 t-1 in 2003 (January-November) (Table 1). The palm kernel oil price […]

Supply and Disappearance: A Review

Malaysia’s palm oil production increased from 11.909 million tonnes in 2002 to 13.35 million tonnes in 2003, i.e. by about 12.14% (Table 1). This was quite a significant compared to the increase in 2002 over 2001 where the growth was by 0.89% indicating that the palms had rested sufficiently low after four years of production. […]

Supply and Disapperance of Malaysian Palm Oil : A Review

Malaysiaís palm oil production increased from 10.842 million tonnes in 2000 to 11.804 million tonnes in 2001, i.e. by about 8.9% (Table 1). This increase was brought about by expansion in the area entering maturity, as well as higher yields that boosted production, especially in Sabah and Sarawak. Favourable rainfall and the improvement in the […]

Trans Fatty Acids – Nutritional Considerations and Labelling: An Update and Implications for Palm Oil

Trans fatty acids are produced when oils and fats containing unsaturated fatty acids are hydrogenated in the presence of a catalyst. Hydrogenation primarily increases the melting range of the unsaturated fats and thereby enables their incorporation into many solid fat formulations. When an unsaturated fat or oil is fully hydrogenated, all the unsaturated fatty acids […]