The International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) today released its latest Scientific Information Bulletin on Partially Hydrogenated Oils for the global food science and technology community represented by more than 300,000 food scientists, technologists, engineers and related social scientists worldwide working with IUFoST. This Scientific Information Bulletin may be of interest to those serving in academia, industry, government, and development organizations.

Hydrogenation of unsaturated edible oils, if done completely, leads to the formation of fatty acid saturated oils, which are important for preparing certain foods such as pastry. However, partial hydrogenation leads to the formation of trans-fatty acids that have been associated with undesirable health effects.

The World Health Organization has estimated that consumption of trans fats may contribute up to 500,000 deaths worldwide from stroke and has developed an ambitious program to end their use in food by 2023. This Scientific Information Bulletin is intended for food scientists and technologists who have the major role to play in the elimination of these synthetic trans-fatty acids from the food supply by reformulating products that now contain them. This SIB complements and partially updates a previous bulletin that was published by IUFoST a decade ago.

Partially Hydrogenated Oils was prepared by Obadina Adewale Olusegun, Ph.D., Head of Department (Food Science and Technology), Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta. Nigeria, Gerald Moy, Ph.D., Food Safety Consultants International, Geneva Switzerland, and Fereidoon Shahidi, Ph.D., University Research Professor (Department of Biochemistry), Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL, Canada on behalf of, and approved by, the IUFoST Scientific Council. This and the other titles in the series of IUFoST Scientific Information Bulletins are available online at https://iufost.org/iufost-scientificinformation-bulletins-sib.

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ABOUT IUFoST

The International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) is the global scientific organization working with more than 300,000 food scientists and technologists in over 100 countries around the world. IUFoST is a full scientific member of ISC (International Science Council) and the only elected representative of Food Science and Technology in the ISC. IUFoST represents food science and technology to international organizations such as WHO, FAO, UNDP, UNIDO, The World Bank, and others.

IUFoST organises world food congresses, among many other activities, to stimulate the ongoing exchange of knowledge and to develop strategies in those scientific disciplines and technologies relating to the expansion, improvement, distribution and conservation of the world’s food supply.

IUFoST SCIENTIFIC COUNCIL 2018-2020: Dr. Fereidoon Shahidi (Chair), Dr. Hongda Chen (Chair-elect), Dr. V. Prakash (Past Chair), Dr. Rotimi Aluko and Dr. Gordon Robertson, Councillors.

General Secretariat, IUFoST,: secretariat@iufost.org, www.iufost.org.