Foodservice customer gives its deep fryers an oil change

Swapping peanut oil for other frying oils brings market opportunities for foodservice providers

Fats and oils are most commonly used as a frying medium in the foodservice setting. Depending on the desired flavor of the final product and the amount of heat necessary, oil choices vary. Choosing the right oil is not an easy process.  Aside from functional and cost factors, foodservice companies must be very careful not to damage their products' flavor appeal by changing oils. Recently, a Cargill foodservice customer was confronted with challenges related to their traditional frying oil of choice, peanut oil.  

Fried foods have been under fire by public-health advocates for years, but that hasn't stopped consumers from eating them. Foodservice providers accommodate consumer preferences and people haven’t stopped ordering french fries.

This foodservice company had always used peanut oil for frying their potato products. There was tremendous sensitivity around changing the taste and texture of their French fries. Peanut oil has a high smoke point and a distinctive flavor profile. It also has a long shelf life because it contains only a small amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids that are prone to oxidation.  However, the cost of peanut oil has risen recently. Couple those rising costs with supplier delivery issues and you have a need for a new oil solution.  

Many foodservice companies are turning to vegetable oils, particularly canola oils, which are low in saturated fat, as an alternative to peanut oil. Oils such as sunflower and canola have high smoke points which makes them well suited for frying.  Cargill presented Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil as an option to our foodservice customer.

Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil contains zero grams of trans fats and low levels of saturated fats per serving*. Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil can also currently lower ingredient cost with an extended fry life. Aside from the functional and cost benefits of high oleic canola oil, Cargill also provides a stable supply chain. The customer was very interested in mitigating supply chain risk across multiple oils instead of carrying the higher risk of using only a single oil; peanut oil.  

Cargill’s technical team, in partnership with the customer, ran taste tests of the new oil at multiple customer locations. The new high oleic oil tested very well and our customer’s leadership team sent a message to all store owner-operators about the benefits of Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil, encouraging adoption.

Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil is preferred by many consumers for “flavor, crispness and overall liking,” earning the highest average consumer sensory score and best nutritional profile in tests by FryTest.com. Cargill supplies all of the customer’s locations now with Clear Valley® high oleic canola oil, and we have been added as a peanut oil supplier as well.

*1 gram of saturated fat per 14 gram serving