High Oleic Soybean Oil Put to the Test at Penn State’s AZ Fraternity
‘It’s really cool that as an ag fraternity, we were one of the first to be a part of it.’
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (May 26, 2015) — French fries, chicken fingers and other fried foods are among the staples of college life, and students consume huge quantities of them. The brothers and sisters at Alpha Zeta fraternity at Penn State are no exception. But what sets them apart is that for the past five months, they’ve been using the new, trans-fat free high oleic soybean oil in their fryers.
In January, the United Soybean Board sponsored a promotion at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in which high oleic soybean oil was used in many of the deep fryers at the food courts with very favorable results. Farm show goers and the food court cooks had the opportunity to taste and see first-hand the difference in high oleic oil. There were a few gallons of oil left over after the promotion. What better way to put the oil to another real-life test than to donate it to the students at Penn State’s Alpha Zeta honorary ag fraternity?
The 26 members who live at the fraternity house, along with members who come there to share meals, take turns in the kitchen. One of the members is Dylan Beam, whose father, Bill, farms in Chester County and serves as chairman of the Pennsylvania Soybean Board and represents Pennsylvania on the United Soybean Board.
At first, said Dylan, they were a bit skeptical about the claims about high oleic soybean oil: that there were health benefits because it contains no trans-fats, that it has a lighter, neutral taste, and that the oil stays cleaner longer than other vegetable commodity oils. These are factors that are especially important to the food manufacturers and foodservice operators who are the target market for high oleic soybean oil.
But after trying the high oleic soybean oil, they were believers. The new oil met the most important criteria for the college students: the taste test. AZ brother Michael Patrick Rush handles much of the food prep and catering. “I think that the quality of the food has improved. It is less greasy and in general just tastes better. The high oleic oil is lighter and doesn’t cling to the food like our old oil did.”
Their attitudes became even more positive after attending an ag event at Penn State where they heard about the potential for high oleic soybeans to revolutionize the soy oil industry by providing the food industry with a trans-fat free alternative. “It’s the next big thing for soybean farmers,” says Dylan. “It’s really cool that as an ag fraternity, we were one of the first to be a part of it.”
About the Pennsylvania Soybean Board
The Pennsylvania Soybean Board is a farmer-controlled Board responsible for managing Pennsylvania’s share of funds received from the nationwide Soybean Checkoff program. The funding is available under an assessment program, approved by Congress in 1990, under which soybean farmers contribute 50 cents of every $100 they receive for their beans at the first point of sale. Funds are used to develop markets, educate consumers, and research new ways to utilize and produce soybeans more efficiently. For more information, visit www.pasoybean.org.
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