Food manufacturers primarily have shifted to using palm oil and high oleic canola oil to replace partially hydrogenated soybean oil in baking and frying fats. Global palm oil production first surpassed soybean oil production in 2004/05 but now is almost one-third greater than soybean oil production. U.S. imports of palm oil more than doubled between 2005 and 2012.
While palm oil and high oleic canola oil have temporarily filled the void left by commodity soybean oil’s removal from baking and frying applications, high oleic soybean oil is poised to take back markets. In the meantime, interesterified soybean oil provides food industry customers with a functional shortening that does not contain trans fatty acids.
