January 05, 2007
The Canadian fast food chain chooses the Canadian oil –
A&W, the original Canadian drive-in restaurant, has switched to canola oil in an effort to eliminate trans fat.
“The research has gone on for about a year and a half, from the time we clearly understood from our consumers they'd like to see a change,” says Mike Atkinson, A&W's director of marketing, adding restaurants across the country began using canola oil in December.
A&W now claims its french fries, chicken burgers, poutine and hash browns contain zero trans fat; trans fat has been cut 95% in its onion rings, Chubby Chicken pieces and strips; and breakfast sandwiches and the Bacon 'n' Egger has seen an 85% cut.
For more information on the nutritional content of A&W food, visit
www.awrestaurants.com/nutrition
Coffee Giant Starbucks
Has also joined the North American trend toward eliminating trans fat. No word on exactly how Starbucks has kicked the trans fat habit, but it has announced its stores across the continent will be trans fat-free by the end of 2007.
And it's no stunt. Universal Studios
theme parks is also chucking trans fat in its U.S. locations. Starting Christmas Eve, Universal switched to an unnamed cooking oil, and added other healthier options to its children's menus.
Bunge resumes canola crushing in Hamilton -
Bunge North America announced in December it will modify its Hamilton, ON plant to accommodate canola crushing. It had been crushing soybeans only.
Modifications will be complete in December 2007, at which time the plant will be capable of crushing 240,000 tonnes of canola per year. It will also continue to crush soybeans.
“We want to process canola at Hamilton to meet the growing demand for canola oil from our customers in food manufacturing who want the oil with the lowest saturate level of all vegetable oils, and from our customers in the biodiesel industry,” says Herb Schafer, Canada country manager, Bunge North America.
This project includes the installation of odour abatement equipment that will reduce odour emissions.
Federal cabinet shuffle could benefit canola industry -
As many across the country anticipated, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's recent cabinet shuffle focused heavily on the environment. John Baird, former president of the Treasury Board, assumed the role of environment minister, while Minister Jim Prentice will chair a new cabinet committee dedicated to the environment and energy security.
Baird has played an important role over the past year in the government's core planning and strategizing, and he will bring a higher profile to the environment portfolio. Overall, the prime minister's changes appear to be setting the stage for a more proactive approach to the environment file and possibly to the biofuels strategy.
It is also noteworthy that Minister Vic Toews has assumed the role of Treasury Board president. As a Manitoban, Toews may be sympathetic to the canola industry's key policy issues.
Growers Manual now on Council website –
The Canola Council’s comprehensive guide to producing canola in western Canada is now available free online. Information includes how to choose varieties, crop establishment and integrated pest management through storage and marketing. You can print individual pages, sections or the entire manual. Go to www.directfocus.com/canolamanual.
Canola Research Directory online –
The Canola Research Directory is a comprehensive list of relevant canola oil research articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Look for it at http://fulfillmentonline.com/canolaBib/search.cfm. You can search for a specific article by author, journal name, year published, and article title. You may also search by subject area or keyword such as heart disease, saturated fat, alpha-linolenic acid or Mediterranean diet. The Canola Council will update this list annually.
Firehouse Chef flogs canola oil on American radio -
The Food Network's Firehouse Chef, Joe Bonanno Jr., did a radio media tour December 28 to promote canola oil as part of healthy eating in the new year. As a result, listeners across the U.S. were exposed to CanolaInfo messages about canola.
Journalists participating in the interviews were given copies of The Healthy Firehouse Cookbook as a jumping-off point for talk about canola oil. Bonanno was able to cite a carrot cake recipe in the book as one of his favourites and an example of how to substitute less healthy ingredients with healthy canola oil.
Among the participants were the USA Radio Network, with 200 stations out of Dallas, TX; the Accent Radio Network, with 17 stations; the Cable Radio Network; the Voice of America - International; and stations in New York, Boston, Raleigh, Florida and Cincinnati.
Nutrition company proudly claims use of canola oil –
Del Mar Nutrition has circulated a press release touting its use of canola oil in CLUE Bars. The release talks about the recent granting by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of a qualified health claim to canola oil, due to its unsaturated fat content.
CLUE Bars were developed by Del Mar's Andy Gloor to help lower cholesterol and contribute to overall cardiovascular health. These bars also contain soy protein, oats, spirulilna, chlorella, bee pollen and walnuts.
Register today for Canola Council convention in Victoria this March –
Register online for Canola Growing Great 2015 convention March 20 – 23 at the Westin Bear Mountain Resort near Victoria. Help plan the strategy for aggressive canola production and marketing to 2015. There’s an early bird discount before January 31. Go to www.canola-council.org/conference/index.htm now. Hotel room and golf spots are limited so don’t delay! Link up to be at the fore of the canola industry today.
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