<i>Trans</i>, saturated, and unsaturated fat in foods in the united states prior to mandatory <i>trans</i>‐fat labeling

Abstract

On July 11, 2003, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published a final rule amending its food-labeling regulations to require that trans FA be declared in the nutrition label of conventional foods and dietary supplements. The effective date of this final rule is January 1, 2006. This places some urgency on increasing the number and types of currently available foods for which there are trans-fat data. Compositional databases on trans fat content of food are currently limited. The purpose of this study was to determine the trans-fat content of a wide range of foods prior to the effective date of the new regulation. AOAC Official Method of Analysis 996.01 was modified for the analysis of trans fat in noncereal products. Food products for analysis were selected on the basis of market share and data from the USDA's 1994-1996 Continuing Survey of Food Intake by Individuals. Foods were purchased from local supermarkets, weighed, hydrolyzed, converted to FAME, and analyzed by GC. The results showed that trans fat (g/100 g fat) ranged from 0.0 to 48.8 in bread, cake, and related products; from 14.9 to 27.7 in margarines; from 7.7 to 35.3 in cookies and crackers; from 24.7 to 38.2 in frozen potatoes; from 0.0 to 17.1 in salty snacks; from 0.0 to 13.2 in vegetable oils and shortenings; from 0.0 to 2.2 in salad dressings and mayonnaises; and from 0.0 to 2.0 in dry breakfast cereals. Serving sizes for the foods included in this survey ranged from 12 to 161 g, and trans-fat levels ranged from 0.0 to 7.2 g/serving. The significant differences in trans-fat content in products within each food category are due to differences in the type of fats and oils used in the manufacturing processes.