Since this has come up again for the second time, I am feeling compelled to provide some information to my readers. ( I also talked about this on my Instagram @back.2.basics.nutrition)
Recently 2 restaurant chains in the United States (most likely coming soon to Canada) have announced that they will be replacing their current cooking oil - soybean oil - with sugarcane oil.
Now this may have #noseedoil advocates cheering BUT lets not get so excited about this as it is still in the infancy stage.
With Hopdoddy’s restaurant going seed oil free and Shake Shack in trial, is this alternative better.
The FACTS:
This sugarcane oil, produced through a fermentation process of using sugar, is touted as a heart healthy monosaturated fat alternative with a low environmental footprint. Not animal fat but not seed oils either.
It all starts with an oil culture (a community of microorganisms cultivated specifically for making healthy fats).
Next, the culture is fed sugar from non-GMO, perennial sugarcane.
Over the course of a few days, microorganisms in the culture convert (or ferment) this sugar into oils or fats. Some oil cultures produce more liquid oils, while others produce more solid fats.
To harvest, the culture is pressed and the oil is released.
Finally, the pressed oil is separated and filtered
This oil currently does come with a high cost, 16oz for $29.99.
**from the Zero Acres website**
Although Zero Acres claims it uses non GMO sugar from sugarcane, and a “community of microorganisms (microalgae or yeast)” in their product and processes. The company has not yet disclosed whether is uses oleaginous yeast or algae (Zero Acre Farms unveils 'cultured oil' boasting high smoke point and ‘clean, neutral taste’ (foodnavigator-usa.com) in their fermentation process. And why is this important? Continue reading…
What is oleaginous yeast - Oleaginous yeast is a type of yeast that can produce large amounts of lipids, which can be used to make biodiesel and other products1. The process of making oleaginous yeast involves growing the yeast on a nitrogen-limited medium, then staining it with a dye such as Nile Red or Sudan Black B to visualize the lipid droplet and examining it microscopically 1. Oleaginous yeasts are typically grown on single saccharides, hydrolysates, or glycerol, and mainly on the mL scale 1. Process development and genetic modification have been applied to alter yeast performance and the lipids, towards the production of biofuels, food/supplements, oleochemicals or animal feed 1. Despite over a century of research and the recent application of advanced genetic engineering techniques, the industrial production of an economically viable commodity oil substitute remains elusive 1. However, over the course of the twenty-first century where climate change will drastically change global food supply networks and direct governmental action will likely be levied at more destructive crops, yeast lipids offer a flexible platform for localized, sustainable lipid production 1.
The other thing we have to consider is the only information on this news sugarcane Oil comes from Zero Acres, the company producing and profiting from this product. (Where have we seen that before?). There is also no long term data on this product on the benefits (if any) to health.
So before we start jumping up and down and thinking this is an alternative to seed oils, how about we just go back to using beef tallow as we once did. (You can read more about that in a previous post, where I give studies that saturated fat is not bad for us. Building with Macronutrients - Part 1 (substack.com)
Sometimes the old saying is true:
If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is
Let me know your thoughts below.
Danni