There’s a lot to consider when looking at the world of bakery shortenings. In the past, bakers often worked with the same shortening across many applications. Not so anymore, especially in light of the Food and Drug Administration’s announcement on June 16 that there is no longer a consensus among qualified experts that phos are Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) for use in any human food. Food manufacturers have until June 18, 2018, to remove phos from their products. Any interested party may seek food additive approval for one or more specific uses of phos by providing data demonstrating a reasonable certainty of no harm of the proposed use or uses, according to the F.D.A.
Many bakers are seeking trans-free options that can replicate the wide working ranges of the tried-and-true all-purpose stuff. Some look to new ingredient bases that help achieve that.
And don’t forget about the demand for organic and clean label products. Bakers also have a need for shortenings that will help their ingredient list look a little more consumer friendly.
Those options are out there, as can be seen in this Tech Showcase. Ingredient suppliers have learned how to manipulate fatty acid composition of vegetable oils to enhance stability while maintaining attractive nutrition labels.
Now is as good a time as any to take a look at the new wave of shortening options.
