The company’s Trancendim brand encompasses a range of vegetable-oil derived diglyceride ingredients intended to reduce saturated fats and completely replace trans fats in shortenings and bakery products – and now potato products. The ingredient line was developed in response to manufacturer and consumer demand for foods with lower saturated fat and trans fat-free foods, especially since evidence mounted that trans fats are detrimental to heart health, Caravan said.
“Consumers are looking for healthier foods and want to see a cleaner label on the products they consume,” the company said. “Oils using Trancendim for potato par frying produce a product with zero grams trans fat that also allows for a cleaner label by removing palm oil and hydrogenation.”
Caravan claims that using Trancendim oil for potato par-frying has no impact on the sensory attributes of the finished product, so “consumers will get a healthier product, without having to sacrifice on the taste they are accustomed to.”
Diglycerides are lipids whose general properties fall between monoglycerides and triglycerides in terms of solubility, boiling point, setting point and so on.
For example, diglycerides mix better with water than triglycerides, which gives better emulsifying properties, but monoglycerides can mix too strongly with water, so that an excess of monoglycerides in a formulation can lead to a waxy or gummy mouthfeel.
Caravan Ingredients claims that the Trancendim range provides the benefits of hydrogenated fats – such as providing longer shelf life and solidity at room temperature – but in a healthier form.