
Healthful
Soybean Oil From the Southeast to Be EvaluatedBy Judy McBride July 18, 2001A new soybean bred by
Agricultural Research Service scientists
for the Southeast fulfills two of the food industrys wishes for
heart-healthy soy oil. Oil from the new soybean has half the saturated fat of traditional
varieties--specifically, the undesirable palmitic acid. And its portion of the
highly unstable polyunsaturated fat, linolenic acid, is at least 40 percent
lower. That should reduce or eliminate the need for hydrogenation in many
frying and food-processing applications. Hydrogenation generates most of the trans fats in the food supply, and trans
fats appear to increase risk of cardiovascular disease much the same as
saturated fats do. So the food industry wants to avoid hydrogenation wherever
possible. The new soybean is named Satelite--pronounced Sat-elite because
it is elite for saturated fat content, according to Richard F.
Wilson. He directs soybean research at ARS
Soybean and
Nitrogen Fixation Research Unit in Raleigh, N.C. Satelite is the first low-linolenic-, low-palmitic-acid variety released for
the Southeast, according to ARS agronomist Joseph W. Burton, who developed the
variety by traditional breeding. Its oil also has more of the desirable
monounsaturated fat, oleic acid, than traditional varieties--about 40 percent
more. But levels still dont meet the industry target of 50 percent of
total fat. Through North Carolina Foundation Seed Producers, ARS is releasing a limited
amount of Satelite seed this year to North
Carolina State University and selected local farmers, who will produce
around 5,000 bushels of beans, enough for oil processors and food companies to
test. The United Soybean Boardfunded part of Satelites development and is providing $77,000 toward the
seed increase. If the oil performs well in pilot tests, it could help food manufacturers
reduce trans fats in their products. Food labels currently dont include
trans fats. But proposed Food and Drug
Administration rules would require that manufacturers add the amount of
trans fat in a serving--if it exceeds 0.5 gram--to the amount of saturated fat
stated on the Nutrition Facts panel. The amount of saturated fat and its
percentage of the daily value would reflect the sum of the two. ARS is the chief scientific research agency of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Story contacts Soybean and Nitrogen Fixation Research U.S. Department of Agriculture |