Fat is Back and That’s a Fact!

At the start of every year, when most us are making resolutions to give up smoking, drink less and eat more healthily, along come the food trends for the year ahead. And these can turn our plans upside down, writes Andre Erasmus.

So, there I was, all set to eat less fatty foods and go for salads, drink less wine and only go for organic food when Canadean’s 2016 trends list crossed my path.

And what a surprise! Among the hot new trends expected to energize packaged foods in 2016 are protein from plants (as opposed to animals), genetic modification becoming consumer friendly, and – wait for it – fat is back.

We all know that bad stuff in the food industry tends to go in cycles. One week the newspapers will tell us instant coffee causes cancer, the next it’s actually ok, and red wine is much maligned on a regular basis. However, more recent stories are telling us that red wine (in moderation) is good for our cholesterol levels and overall health.
But fat is one of those health villains that has been around for decades. According to Canadean, ‘fat is actually being promoted as a health-enhancing ingredient in categories you would not expect, like bottled water’.
They point out that FAT water is a functional water, launched recently in the United States, which contains medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) derived from coconut oil.
So, water is good for us? We all knew that…
How will these predicted trends affect bread, I wondered? Well, according to the British Federation of Bakers, bread, in one form or another, has formed a staple part of the human diet for thousands of years. But nowadays bread is often overlooked due to a belief that it lacks nutritional value or that eating bread leads to weight gain.

That’s wrong. Bread has vitamin B, folic acid, calcium, healthy starchy carbohydrates and fiber, proudly boasts the Federation.

What about fat? Fats are used in the baking process, we all know that too, but there are fat replacers and low-fat options out there.

For instance, Ulrick & Short offer Delyte – a clean label ingredient range of fat replacers for a wide range of baked goods including cakes, muffins, biscuits, breads and pastries which is derived from GM-free tapioca.

Cargill Foods’ Technical Services Director Bob Wainwright, says the goal in replacing fat with something other than fat is to reduce the total fat content and or total calories from fat.

“Fat is typically the highest cost ingredient so that can be another reason to do it,” he adds.

Emulsifiers do this job, as do other fat replacers and, Wainwright adds: “The desire to replace or reduce fats in foods will continue because of consumer awareness.”

“Fat content is still on their radar screen and obesity is still a huge issue. One easy hit in reducing the caloric density is to reduce the fat. There will continue to be a lot of enthusiasm around that.”

Bakeries around the globe have concentrated on lower salt and fat levels in their bread, to keep consumers happy. And the UK-based research body Campden BRI offers product development and consultancy to help bakers reduce the fat content of baked goods and improve the nutritional profile by decreasing trans- and increasing omega fatty acids. 

So, while Canadean might be on to something with packaged food trends, bread seems to be doing OK and staying ahead of the game.

I know because the croutons in my Caesar salad were particularly healthy tasting…