Article No : a16_145

Margarines and Shortenings

IAN P. FREEMAN (RETIRED), Unilever, 8 Vicarage Close, Ravensden MK44 2RW,
United Kingdom

1. History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 245 3.1.2.3. Interesterification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

2. Properties of Margarine . . . . . . . . .... 247 3.1.2.4. Fractionation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
2.1. Subjective Properties . . . . . . . . . . . .... 247 3.2. The Aqueous Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
2.2. Objective Properties . . . . . . . . . . . .... 248 3.2.1. The Aqueous Phase in Conventional
2.2.1. Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 248 Margarines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
2.2.2. Gloss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 248 3.2.2. The Aqueous Phase in Low-Fat Spreads . . 255
2.2.3. Melting Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 248 3.3. Emulsifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
2.2.4. Penetration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 249 3.4. Minor Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
2.2.5. Drop Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 249 4. Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
2.2.6. Salt Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 249 4.1. Churn Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
2.2.7. Keeping Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 249 4.2. Votator Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
3. Composition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 251 5. Specialty Margarines and Shortenings. . 259
3.1. The Fat Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 251 5.1. Pastry Margarines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
3.1.1. Choice of Fat Blend Components . . . .... 251 5.2. Frying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
3.1.2. Preparation of Fat Blends. . . . . . . . . .... 253 6. Packaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
3.1.2.1. Refining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 253 7. Economic Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
3.1.2.2. Hardening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 253 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

1. History describe the lower and higher melting fractions

The term ‘‘margarine’’ was coined by the French
chemist MICHEL CHEVREUL in 1814. He used it to
describe one of what he thought to be the three
primary constituents of natural fats, the others
being oleine (from the Latin oleum for oil) and
stearine (solid fat, from the Greek stear for
tallow). ‘‘Margarine’’ was supposedly a third,
semisolid constituent, so-named (from the Greek
margaron, pearl) because of its pearl-like, crys-
talline appearance. CHEVREUL believed that these
three substances were glycerides of the fatty
acids oleic acid, stearic acid, and margaric acid,
respectively. Subsequent investigation has
shown that natural fats contain many more fatty
acids than these three (! Fats and Fatty Oils).
Oleic acid and stearic acid have since acquired
unique chemical identities, and some authors still
use CHEVREUL’s ‘‘margaric acid’’ as a trivial name
for heptadecanoic acid even though his original
concept has been shown to be erroneous. The
terms olein and stearin have been retained to
into which natural fats can be separated, but the
term margarine is no longer employed in that
context. It is now used instead to describe a
commodity resembling butter but manufactured
from fats derived from sources other than milk
(! Dairy Products, Imitation).
Such a commodity was first produced by
HIPPOLYTE MÈGE – MOURIES in 1869 in response
to a prize offered by NAPOLEON III for a substitute
for butter. M
eGE – MOURIES removed the
stearin from beef tallow by fractional crystalli-
zation, leaving a mixture of olein and margarine
or oleomargarine. This he emulsified with
milk, water, and a little alkali to produce a
plastic, fat-continuous emulsion resembling but-
ter in texture. The term oleomargarine (or
‘‘oleo’’) is still used for this product in the United
States. In Europe the name was shortened to
margarine, a name that was established by Act
of Parliament as the legal term in Britain in 1887
in preference to the suggested alternative
‘‘butterine’’.

2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

DOI: 10.1002/14356007.a16_145
246 Margarines and Shortenings
Early production of margarine was dependent
upon the availability of the oleomargarine from
beef tallow to provide the desired consistency.
However, two inventions soon opened the way to
a wide range of natural fats as potential raw
materials for margarine manufacture: hardening
and interesterification.
Hardening, or hydrogenation, consists of
reactions of unsaturated fats with hydrogen,
thereby raising their melting points and in
some cases increasing their oxidative stability.
This procedure was introduced by NORMANN in
1903 [4].
Interesterification involves the exchange of
fatty acid moieties between or within glycerides
to create new glyceride components. The ex-
change of acid moieties between esters had been
demonstrated by FRIEDEL and CRAFTS [5] as early
as 1865, and its potential application to natural
fats was demonstrated by NORMANN in the 1920s
[6]. Because of the required high temperatures
(> 200
C) and long reaction times (several
hours), however, the process was of no interest
to margarine manufacturers until ECKEY intro-
duced alkali-metal catalysts in 1948 [7]. The
original conditions are not only economically
prohibitive, they are also deleterious with respect
to the fat. Using alkali-metal catalysts the reac-
tion can be carried to completion below 60
C
within minutes.
A third major development in the manufacture
of margarine was the introduction of the
votator system in 1936, permitting the ingredi-
ents (i.e., fat, the aqueous phase, and minor
components) to be premixed and then
subjected to simultaneous rapid shearing and
cooling. This not only causes the aqueous phase
to be finely and uniformly dispersed throughout
the fat phase but also gives the processor a greater
degree of control over the final texture of the
product.
Margarine was first conceived as a substitute
for butter, and from the start it was seen as a
commercial threat by the dairy industry. Marga-
rine manufacture was soon controlled by legisla-
tion designed to protect the dairy interest. Sup-
pression of the name ‘‘butterine’’ was considered
to be an early victory for the dairy farmers in this
long standing ‘‘war’’. Other legislation soon
decreed that margarine must be sold as a product
Vol. 22
distinct from butter, and it prohibited the extend-
ing of butter products by incorporation of small
proportions of margarine. In the United States,
the addition of color to margarine to give it a
more butter-like appearance was long prohibited,
and manufacturers had to resort to including
capsules of color with the packs of margarine,
which consumers could blend in to their own
satisfaction.
Despite such legislation, the relative cheap-
ness of margarine soon made it a major compo-
nent of the diet, especially for the poorer mem-
bers of society, and enlightened governments
quickly foresaw the dangers of malnutrition if
nutritional standards were not laid down and
maintained. The proportion of water was thus
controlled at no more than 15 % in most coun-
tries, and the addition of vitamins A and D was
made compulsory in order to maintain margarine
at a nutritional standard comparable with that of
butter.
Recent technical advances and new insights
into nutrition and health have enabled
margarine manufacturers to exploit more fully
the flexibility inherent in the formulation of
margarine. As a result, margarine is now a
product in its own right, not simply a cheap
substitute for butter. For example, wider usage
of domestic refrigerators has produced a
demand for products plastic enough to spread
at low temperatures, a demand that has been
met by the so-called soft blend margarines.
These contain fats chosen in such a way that the
product retains a spreadable plasticity over a
wide range of temperatures. A high level of fat
in the diet, especially saturated fat, is now con-
sidered undesirable, and this has led to the devel-
opment of low-fat spreads and to the use of fat
blends with a high proportion of polyunsaturated
fatty acids (PUFA). The early protective legisla-
tion has also come under pressure from respon-
sible nutritional authorities, who have urged that
margarine manufacturers be permitted more flex-
ibility. Consumers now have a wide choice of
margarine-type products, covering the whole
gamut of fat contents from conventional marga-
rine at 85 % down to very low fat spreads at ca.
20 %, and including various melanges with dairy
products such as low calorie and high PUFA
‘‘butters’’.
Brand names for the various types of marga-
rine are listed in Table 1.
Vol. 22 Margarines and Shortenings 247

Table 1. Some typical margarines and other spreads with brand names 2. Objective properties measured with laborato-
in use at the time of writing (1989)
ry instruments
Fat content, Brand
wt % name Manufacturer Country
2.1. Subjective Properties
Conventional Margarines
General
Purpose The most obvious subjective property is appear-
ca. 80 Stork Unilever UK ance, which comes into play as soon as the
ca. 80 Imperial Unilever USA consumer opens the package. First, the product
ca. 80 Rama Unilever FRG
ca. 80 Lesieur Lesieur Alim. France
must have an attractive color. This has tradition-
Soft Blend (i.e., spread at refrigerator temperature) ally meant a yellow color similar to that of
ca. 80 Stork S.B. Unilever UK butter. Margarine must also have a smooth,
ca. 80 Blue Band Unilever UK creamy-looking texture; i.e., it should not appear
PUFA (i.e., high in polyunsaturates)
ca. 80 Flora Unilever UK
grainy or greasy. When the consumer applies
ca. 80 Becel Unilever Netherlands, the margarine to a piece of bread or biscuit, it
FRG should have good ‘‘spreadability’’; i.e., it should
ca. 80 Vitelma Vandemoortele Belgium be soft enough to spread smoothly and easily
ca. 80 Sense Van Dijk Netherlands
ca. 80 Vitalite Kraft UK
without breaking into lumps, exuding water, or
Reduced Fat Spreads dragging the bread surface. Furthermore, the
72 Promise Unilever USA margarine must have an acceptable flavor and
70 Krona Unilever UK ‘‘mouthfeel’’.
60 Stork Light Unilever UK
60 Light Soft Fleischmann USA
For Europe and many other parts of the
52 Country Crock Unilever USA world the standard for good flavor is fresh
40 Delight Unilever UK butter, and much research has been devoted to
40 Gold St Ivel UK creating flavor cocktails imparting a butter-like
40 Blue Band Unilever Netherlands
27.5 Outline Unilever UK
taste. In some places, however, other flavors are
25 Gold Lowest St Ivel UK preferred. Thus, in parts of South America fruit
Melanges (i.e., mixtures of butter fat and vegetable fats) flavors such as pineapple are appreciated, while
78 Willow Dairy Crest UK in some African countries fish flavors are
75 Golden Churn Kraft UK
75 Clover Dairy Crest UK
popular.
40 Clover Light Dairy Crest UK Mouthfeel is a reflection of the physical
40 St Hubert 4 I St Hubert France changes that take place as margarine melts
Dairies and breaks down under the action of teeth and
40 St Florigny Unilever France
40 Tartine Lesieur Alim. France
tongue and mixes with saliva in the warm envi-
Reduced Fat Butters rons of the mouth. This melt-down can take place
40 Half Fat Anchor Foods UK smoothly or lumpily. The melt-down may be
Anchor complete, or some unmelted fat may remain
40 Die Leichte Unilever FRG
40 Sylphide Fromagerie Bel France
and be perceived as a waxy coating around the
40 Vive la Vie Unilever France tongue and palate. The melted product can feel
40 Balade Corman-France France creamy or thin and watery. In some circum-
stances, a cool sensation is perceived, perhaps
due to a rapidly melting fat blend. The flavor
release pattern is also affected by the way in
which margarine breaks down, releasing flavor
2. Properties of Margarine components to the palate at different rates, which
may in turn influence the consumer’s overall
The properties of margarine can be considered perception of flavor.
under two headings: All these effects can be related, in theory at
least, to such physical properties of the margarine
1. Subjective properties that are assessed by the as melting characteristics or emulsion stability,
reaction of a consumer when presented with a but it is not possible to measure all of them
sample of the margarine directly with laboratory instruments.
248 Margarines and Shortenings
2.2. Objective Properties
2.2.1. Color
The color of margarine is defined in terms of the
tristimulus concept, which postulates that any
color can be specified in terms of the three
primary colors red, yellow, and blue. In practice,
the color of light reflected from the surface of a
margarine sample is matched against that of light
which has passed through a series of filters based
on the primary colors. The color is then defined in
terms of the density of each of the filter colors
required to give a match. A suitable commercial
instrument for this purpose is the Lovibond Tint-
ometer [8].
Color is primarily dependent on the amount of
coloring material added to the margarine mix-
ture, but it is also affected by the physical nature
of the margarine (e.g., by the ratio of solid fat to
liquid oil in the fat phase, the amount of the water
phase, and the size and distribution of water
droplets).
2.2.2. Gloss
Gloss is a measure of the efficiency with which
light is reflected from the surface of the marga-
rine. A mirror surface reflects a beam of light at
the same angle at which the beam strikes the
surface, with little or no scattering. A matt sur-
face scatters the beam so that the intensity of the
reflected light is uniform over a wide angle of
reflection. A glossy surface falls between these
two extremes: a portion of the light is reflected
along the angle of incidence, but some is scat-
tered. Glossiness can therefore be measured by
comparing the intensity of incident light with that
of reflected light at predetermined angles.
Like color, gloss is dependent upon the physi-
cal nature of the margarine; i.e., upon the pro-
portion and distribution of solid fat crystals and
water droplets.
2.2.3. Melting Properties
The melting characteristics of a margarine are
essentially those of the fat blend used in its
composition, and they are responsible for many
of the product’s subjective characteristics (see
Vol. 22
Section 2.1). A fat blend, and indeed a natural fat,
consists of a complex mixture of glycerides, each
with its own characteristic melting point and each
influencing and influenced by the melting of
other glycerides in the mixture through the for-
mation of solutions and eutectics. As a result, a
solid fat does not show a single sharp melting
point, but rather a gradual softening over a wide
range of temperature. The melting character of a
fat must therefore be defined in terms of the solids
content of the fat at a given temperature.
Dilatation. Traditionally, solids content
was measured by dilatation [9]. A completely
solid fat, like any other solid, shows a small
increase of volume with increasing temperature.
A fully liquid oil also expands when heated,
slightly more than does a solid fat. However,
when the solid melts to a liquid, a considerably
greater volume change is observed. Therefore,
the increase in volume in the course of heating
between two temperatures is essentially a mea-
sure of the proportion of the sample that melts
over that temperature range. In practice the
change is measured with a dilatometer, which
consists of a glass bulb containing the fat sample
connected to a graduated capillary tube contain-
ing a marker liquid. As the volume of fat in the
bulb increases the marker liquid is pushed up the
capillary, permitting the volume change to be
quantified. Such a bulb is immersed sequentially
in a series of water baths at different temperatures
and for each bath the level of liquid in the
capillary is noted. After correcting for expansion
of the glass and the liquid oil it is then possible to
calculate the proportion of fat melted at each
temperature.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. Today it is
generally more convenient to use a nuclear mag-
netic resonance (NMR) technique to measure
solid fat content [10]. This is possible because
a proton within a molecule responds differently
to a strong magnetic field depending on whether
it is held rigidly in a solid crystal matrix or only
restrained in a liquid substrate. NMR instruments
especially designed for this application are com-
mercially available.
Polymorphism. One factor that can confuse
the measurement of solid fat content by either
dilatation or NMR is the phenomenon of poly-
Vol. 22
morphism [11]. Thus, many compounds are ca-
pable of assuming any of a number of different
physical forms, each with a different melting
point. This phenomenon is especially evident in
the behavior of fats. When a melted fat is cooled
rapidly below its melting range, it usually crystal-
lizes in an unstable form known as the a modifi-
cation. On standing, this rearranges into a more
stable b or b0 form (cf. Section 3.1.1). Stable
modifications can also be achieved by slow cool-
ing or by crystallization from a solvent. The
solid content of a particular sample depends on
the relative proportions of these various poly-
morphs and therefore on the way in which the
sample has been prepared. For quantitative com-
parisons, samples must therefore be subjected to
a standard regime before their solids content is
measured.
2.2.4. Penetration
Penetration is a measure of the resistance shown
to a plunger pressed through the margarine under
standard conditions. It depends upon both the
viscosity of the liquid components of the marga-
rine mix and the rigidity and extension of the
network of solid fat crystals (see Section 3.1.1).
Penetration is measured with a penetrometer
[12]. A plunger with a standard conical tip and
loaded with a standard weight is allowed to sink
for a standard period of time and by gravitational
force alone into the surface of the margarine. The
depth to which the plunger penetrates is recorded
on a dial. Such an instrument must normally be
housed in a temperature-controlled environment,
and the sample should be stored under controlled
temperature conditions for at least a week prior to
measurement.
The penetration value can be indirectly related
to such subjective properties as spreadability and
how the margarine feels when cut with a knife. It
also gives an indication of how well the marga-
rine will retain its shape during packing, storage,
and transport.
2.2.5. Drop Size
The aqueous phase of a margarine is dispersed in
the fat phase in the form of small droplets with a
maximum diameter of about 100 mm. Average
Margarines and Shortenings 249
droplet size is 5 – 10 mm. In conventional mar-
garines, drop size is an important factor in con-
trolling the biological stability of the product.
Most microorganisms can only develop in an
aqueous environment and their growth through-
out the product is therefore inhibited if water is
present only in very small drops. In the case of
low-fat spreads (where water constitutes 60 % or
more of the total composition) the droplet size
can also affect such subjective properties
as hardness, mouthfeel and flavor release, but
these considerations are less critical in conven-
tional margarines (with only ca. 15 % water
content).
Drop size can be measured directly with an
optical microscope or indirectly by NMR tech-
niques [13]. Both methods are subject to diffi-
culties of interpretation because the droplets in a
given sample have a range of sizes and are not
necessarily spherical.
2.2.6. Salt Release
The salt release test provides an indication of
how margarine is likely to break down in the
mouth. Thus, a sample of margarine is trans-
ferred to a vessel containing water and two
electrodes with which the conductivity of the
water can be measured. The sample is then stirred
and the temperature is slowly raised. When the
sample begins to break down, the aqueous phase
of the margarine is released from its surrounding
fat phase and any salt present is liberated. As a
result, the conductivity of the water increases.
For a good product this increase should occur at
around mouth temperature, i.e., 33 – 37
C. If
the salt release occurs at a considerably higher
temperature (e.g., 40
C) then the product will
have a dead, waxy feel in the mouth.
2.2.7. Keeping Properties
If stored for too long or under unfavorable con-
ditions, desirable margarine properties may be
lost or undesirable ones may develop. Physical,
chemical, or biological changes may be
responsible.
Physical Changes. Physical changes lead to
a breakdown in the structure of the margarine.
250 Margarines and Shortenings
1. Emulsion instability results in the coalescence
of dispersed water droplets and visible sepa-
ration of water from the product. Provided a
suitable emulsifier has been chosen and the
product has been correctly processed, this
only becomes a problem if the product is
subjected to extreme changes of temperature.
2. Oily exudation indicates a breakdown of the
crystal network in the fat phase of the product,
and there is visible separation of liquid oil at
the surface (i.e., between the paper and the
product in a wrapped margarine, or between
the walls of the tub and the product in a tub-
filled margarine). Exudation may arise as a
result of inappropriate choice of fat composi-
tion, but in an established product it is more
often an effect of exposure to extreme tem-
peratures or to mechanical mishandling.
3. Sandiness or graininess is due either to con-
tinued growth of individual crystals or to
aggregation of crystals after processing. The
effect can be detected visually (by an exces-
sively matt or granular surface appearance) or
by mouthfeel [14]. Certain fats or fat blends
(notably those containing palm oil and lard)
are particularly prone to this fault due to the
presence of large quantities of single species
of glycerides, oleodipalmitins, or palmitodio-
leins, which readily form compound crystals.
Critical proportions of these fats should be
avoided. Interesterification can also be used to
reduce the concentration of individual trigly-
cerides responsible for the effect.
Chemical Changes. Chemical changes af-
fect the flavor of a product, causing rancidity
through either autoxidation or hydrolysis.
Autoxidation refers to reaction between fatty
acid chains and atmospheric oxygen. The first
step is removal of a hydrogen atom from the
hydrocarbon chain of the fatty acid and its re-
placement by a hydroperoxide group. The latter
then reacts further by addition to double bonds or
by chain cleavage to give a complex mixture of
aldehydes, ketones, and short-chain fatty acids.
Many of these products are highly flavor-inten-
sive, only a few parts per million being sufficient
to impart a detectable flavor. Hydrogen atoms on
carbon atoms adjacent to double bonds, and to a
lesser extent those adjacent to ester groups, are
most labile and therefore most readily attacked.
Vol. 22
Polyunsaturated fatty acids are more susceptible
than monounsaturated acids, which in turn are
more susceptible than saturated acids. Fish oils
are highly unsaturated, with up to six double
bonds per fatty acid chain, and these are particu-
larly prone to autoxidation. They have the added
disadvantage that their autoxidation products
have characteristic rancid, fishy flavors unac-
ceptable in a margarine product. For this reason
fish oils are only used in margarine formulations
after the number of double bonds has been re-
duced by hardening.
In general, autoxidation can be controlled by
efficient refining (see Section 3.1.1). Refining not
only removes indigenous flavors from natural
oils or fats but also reduces the level of any
pro-oxidants present. If a blend contains predom-
inantly animal fats, further protection by antiox-
idants may be required. This precaution is not
normally necessary for vegetable fats and oils, as
these contain adequate quantities of natural anti-
oxidants in the form of tocopherols.
Hydrolytic Rancidity occurs when the ester
linkage joining the fatty acid moiety to glycerol is
split, leading to the release of free fatty acid. This
can be a result of autoxidation, but it is more
likely to be caused by hydrolysis. Long-chain
fatty acids ( C16) are virtually flavorless,
so their release does not produce a flavor prob-
lem. On the other hand, short-chain fatty acids
( C12) have quite intense intrinsic flavors, and
their release causes the off-flavors variously
described as rancid, soapy, or cheesey. Since
butter contains a relatively high proportion of
such short-chain acids it is more prone than
most margarines to this form of off-flavor
development.
Biological Changes. Biological changes are
the result of microbial contamination of a mar-
garine. If allowed to develop, microorganisms
can render a product unsightly and unwholesome
as well as subject to physical and chemical
changes. The primary means of controlling mi-
croorganisms is strict attention to hygiene during
storage of ingredients, processing, and packag-
ing, but preservatives are sometimes used to
protect the stored product after packaging. Be-
cause of their high water content, low-fat spreads
are more susceptible than conventional margar-
ines to this type of deterioration.
Vol. 22
3. Composition
All margarines consist of both a fat phase and an
aqueous phase. In conventional margarines the
fat phase constitutes ca. 85 % of the total mixture.
Low-fat spreads can contain as little as 20 % fat
phase, with a correspondingly larger amount of
aqueous phase.
3.1. The Fat Phase
The fat phase consists predominantly of blends of
natural or modified oils or fats. These comprise
not only triglycerides but also various minor
natural ingredients such as tocopherols and ster-
ols. Small amounts of other substances must be
added by the manufacturer, including emulsi-
fiers, coloring agents, and antioxidants.
3.1.1. Choice of Fat Blend Components
The most essential characteristic of the fat blend
for a margarine is that it contains a certain
proportion (at least 15 – 20 wt %) of a fat
that is solid at normal ambient temperature. This
solid fat is known as the hardstock, and its
function is to form a network of fat crystals
through the otherwise liquid oil and so give it
a certain rigidity [15]. Ideally, the hardstock
should all have melted or dissolved at mouth
temperature, otherwise the product has a heavy,
waxy mouthfeel. However, a small proportion
( 2 %) of higher-melting fats can be tolerated
without the effect being too noticeable. Indeed, a
little high-melting material can be beneficial, in
that it promotes crystallization of the main frac-
tion of the hardstock and also stabilizes the
plasticity of the blend over a wide range of
temperature. In margarines designed for sale
in tropical countries, ideal mouthfeel may
have to be sacrificed to some extent and the
proportion of high-melting fat increased to en-
sure that the margarine withstands high ambient
temperatures.
Crystallization characteristics of the hard-
stock can also be critical, but this is not usually
a concern for general-purpose margarines (i.e.,
those other than soft blend or high PUFA mar-
garines). Typical formulations are based on a mix
of fats with a wide range of melting points. The
Margarines and Shortenings 251
fats are typically hardened or partially hardened
to ensure a substantial proportion of solid fat over
a wide temperature range. An excessively high
level of high-melting components must be
avoided, as must components with undesirable
crystallization characteristics. An example of
such a characteristic is the tendency to crystallize
slowly, causing too much growth of solid crystals
subsequent to mechanical processing. This phe-
nomenon, known as posthardening, gives rise to
products with a hard, brittle texture and is espe-
cially associated with palm oil. The somewhat
similar problem of sandiness or graininess is
commonly associated with lard or blends of lard
and palm oil.
Apart from these restrictions, the main
criterion for choice of fat components is the
cost, and the blend formulator will adapt his
formulations to whatever is economically
attractive at the time. He is aided in this by
the concept of linear programming, which pos-
tulates that the melting characteristics of a blend
of fats are additive functions of the individual
components of the blend [16]. Thus, the solid fat
content of a blend S can be calculated from the
formula:
S ¼ xAþyBþzCþ . . .
where x, y, z, . . . are the proportions of the
individual components and A, B, C, . . . are the
solid fat contents of those components. This
formula is reasonably valid over a wide range
of blends and conditions, and enables the
blender to substitute components at will depend-
ing on availability and cost. For soft blend mar-
garines, and especially for high PUFA margar-
ines, the crystallization characteristics of the
hardstocks are more critical. In order to comply
with physical or nutritional requirements, the
proportion of hardstock must be kept to a mini-
mum and the ability of the hardstock to form an
intermeshing crystal network must be maxi-
mized. This means that fats with a tendency to
crystallize in the b form, which exhibits small,
compact, spherulitic crystals with little intercrys-
tal interaction, are rejected in favor of those with
a tendency to form b0 crystals, with extended
open dendritic growth (! Fats and Fatty Oils,
Chap. 3.).
Typical Oils and Fats Used in Margarine.
The oil blender can select his components from a
252 Margarines and Shortenings Vol. 22

Table 2. Typical oils used in margarine manufacture

Type of oil Region of origin Use*

Soybean USA and South America widely used as a cheap source of PUFA (linoleic acid) also, after
hardening, as a hardstock
Cottonseed USA and Eastern Mediterranean in margarine mainly used after hardening as a hardstock espe-
cially in USA
Rapeseed North America and Northern Europe since the development of low-erucic varieties, this has been
increasingly used as a replacement for soya bean oil in Europe and
Canada
Sunflower widely distributed in warmer temperature zones main source of PUFA (linoleic acid)
Safflower USA, Central America, North Africa, and India richer in PUFA than sunflower but more expensive
Groundnut widely distributed in semitropical areas formerly one of the basic commodity oils for margarine, both as a
liquid oil and, after hardening, as a hardstock but now relatively
expensive
Palm Malaysia and Central Africa widely used both as the whole oil and after fractionation or
interesterification when melting characteristics are important
Lard widely distributed where pigs are raised, mainly used in similar contexts to palm oil but only in circumstances
USA and Europe where the animal source is not important
Beef tallow USA, Europe, and Australasia limited use of the olein in margarines, especially those products
where texture is more important than health appeal
Palm kernel as for palm oil widely used as a hardstock because of its relatively sharp melting
range at about mouth temperature
Coconut Pacific Islands, West Indies, and Southern Indian as for palm kernel
Continent
Fish
Herring North Atlantic South very cheap source of oil but because of flavor problems can only
Menhaden Atlantic North be used in food products after hardening; however, increased
Pilchard Pacific South exploitation as source of essential fatty acids and sale as such
Anchovy Pacific through pharmacies and health food stores may alter this pattern
of use
*
PUFA ¼ polyunsaturated fatty acids

wide range of natural oils and fats but only about
a dozen are of commercial importance at any one
time (Table 2). The list varies depending on
agricultural practice and availability, but the
following applies at the time of writing (1989).
Of the liquid oils, soybean oil [8001-22-7] is the
most widely used, with rapeseed oil [8002-13-9]
a close equivalent in Europe. Sunflower oil
[8001-21-6] is favored in high PUFA blends
because of its high content of linoleic acid (ca.
50 – 60 %) and the absence of the linolenic acid
present in soybean oil, which reduces flavor
stability. Safflower oil [8001-23-8] is more ex-
pensive than sunflower oil, but it is favored by
some manufacturers because it has an even high-
er linoleic acid content and can therefore be used
to maintain a high PUFA content with a higher
level of hardstock. Peanut oil [8002-03-7] was at
one time widely favored because of its high
oxidative stability, but it is now more expensive
than other liquid oils. Palm oil [8002-75-3] and
lard [61789-99-9] are semiliquid oils whose us-
age in unmodified form is restricted by the crys-
tallization characteristics discussed above.
Apart from lard, the only animal fat to find wide
application is beef tallow [61789-97-7], but, as
M
eGE – MOURIES found (cf. Chap. 1), the high-
melting stearin must be removed before beef
tallow can be used. Butter fat is of course incor-
porated into melange products. The lauric fats
(palm kernel oil [8023-79-8] and coconut oil
[8001-31-8]), so called because they contain
a high level of lauric acid, are also useful as
hardstock components since they have relatively
sharp melting points near mouth temperature.
Marine oils are among the cheapest oils avail-
able, but because of flavor problems they can
only be used (after hardening) in cheaper,
lower quality margarines. At one time this source
was dominated by whale oil, but embargoes
placed on whaling for conservation reasons have
caused whale oil to be replaced by oils derived
from such oily fish as herring, menhaden,
and anchovy. For further information on the oils
and fats described in this section, see ! Fats and
Fatty Oils.
Vol. 22
3.1.2. Preparation of Fat Blends
3.1.2.1. Refining
All crude oils are darkly colored and strongly
flavored, and they contain such undesirable com-
ponents as free fatty acids and phosphatides.
They must therefore be subjected to a refining
process before use to produce a bland, lightly
colored, neutral oil with increased resistance to
autoxidation. Conventional refining involves
three main stages: neutralization, bleaching, and
deodorization (! Fats and Fatty Oils, Chap. 6.).
Neutralization removes free fatty acids and it
is carried out in the early stages of refining
because acids would interfere with such later
procedures as bleaching. In the alkali neutraliza-
tion process, the crude oil is stirred with an
aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide, which
reacts with free fatty acids to form soaps. After
settling, the aqueous phase containing the soaps
is drained off. In the alternative physical refining
process the oil is neutralized by distillation, free
fatty acids being more volatile than the parent
triglycerides.
Oils with a high proportion of phosphatides
(e.g., soybean oil) are subjected to degumming, in
which boiling water is used to hydrate and pre-
cipitate the phosphatides. Phosphoric or citric
acid is often included in the boiling water to
facilitate hydrolysis of the more resistant
phosphatides.
The dried, neutralized oil is next subjected to
bleaching. This process decolorizes the oil and
removes various minor components, including
compounds of heavy metals (especially iron and
copper), which promote autoxidation, and of
alkali metals, which promote hydrolysis. An
absorbent material (usually an activated bleach-
ing earth like fuller’s earth, but sometimes char-
coal) is stirred into the oil and stirring is contin-
ued under an inert atmosphere for 20 – 30 min at
80 – 120
C, after which the absorbent is re-
moved by filtration.
The final stage of refining is deodorization.
The oil is heated to 180 – 250
C for several
hours while steam is blown through it. A vacuum
is also applied to remove volatiles, which include
flavor components (especially short-chain autox-
idation products and residual free fatty acids).
In addition to simple refining, natural oils are
sometimes subjected to procedures designed to
Margarines and Shortenings 253
alter their physical or chemical characteristics.
Examples include hardening (hydrogenation),
interesterification, and fractionation, which are
discussed in the following sections.
3.1.2.2. Hardening
Hardening or hydrogenation is the process by
which unsaturated fatty acids in an oil are reacted
with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst (!
Fats and Fatty Oils). Hydrogen adds to carbon –
carbon double bonds in the fatty acid chain,
converting them to saturated bonds.
The most common catalyst in oil and fat
processing is activated metallic nickel, although
other activated metals are sometimes used. Cat-
alysts are most active when freshly prepared, and
they lose activity with use, especially when
subjected to oils containing a significant amount
of sulfur. Sulfur is the most common poison for
this type of catalyst. Some catalysts are deliber-
ately poisoned with high-sulfur oil to achieve a
specific degree of activity, because less active
catalysts show greater selectivity.
Selective catalysts favor the hydrogenation of
polyunsaturated fatty acids relative to monoun-
saturated fatty acids. Thus, conversion of linoleic
acid, with two double bonds, to a form of oleic
acid with only one double bond, is favored over
the conversion of oleic acid to stearic acid with no
double bonds. With a nonselective catalyst on the
other hand, double bonds are attacked randomly;
saturation of linoleic acid thus proceeds in par-
allel with that of oleic acid.
Another potential reaction under hardening
conditions is isomerization without the addition
of hydrogen. That is, the positions of double
bonds along the chain may change. Moreover,
cis double bonds, which prevail in natural oils
and fats, may be converted into the trans form, a
geometry that occurs only rarely in natural oils.
Isomerization reactions are favored by less active
catalysts and also under conditions of hydrogen
starvation.
The main purpose of hardening is to raise the
solids content of an oil. In general, the more
unsaturated the oil or fat, the lower is its melting
point. Melting points of trans fatty acids are also
higher than those of the corresponding cis iso-
mers. Nonselective hardening tends to produce a
wider mix of solid components, giving a fat that
is plastic over a wide range of temperature.
254 Margarines and Shortenings
Selective hardening and trans hardening both
favor a less complex mixture, resulting in a
narrower melting range. Hardening also helps to
stabilize a polyunsaturated oil against autoxida-
tion. Thus, the linolenic acid in soybean oil (with
three double bonds) is reduced in the course of
hardening, as are the highly unsaturated fatty
acids (with five or six double bonds) in fish oils.
3.1.2.3. Interesterification
Interesterification alters the ester links in oils and
fats joining fatty acid moieties and glycerol; thus,
one fatty acid residue from one of the three
positions on glycerol is interchanged with anoth-
er , either on the same molecule or on another
molecule (! Fats and Fatty Oils, ! Fats and
Fatty Oils). This process commonly results in a
random fatty acid distribution over all the glyc-
eride molecules present (random interesterifica-
tion). In the case of a two-component blend, such
as a liquid oil and a solid fat, interesterification
gives a more complex spectrum of glycerides
than would be obtained by simple physical mix-
ing. The result is a plastic fat that melts gradually
over a wide temperature range rather than a
semisolid oil with high-melting components.
Interesterification can also be used to eliminate
some triglyceride components that tend to domi-
nate the crystallization behavior of a mixture
(e.g., to remove troublesome triglyceride species
from lard or palm oil, see Section 2.2.7).
Interesterification is catalyzed by heavy-metal
salts such as tin(II) chloride or by fatty-acid soaps
of the alkali metals. These are generally intro-
duced at a level of about 2 %. For such catalysts to
be effective, the reaction must be carried out at
about 200
C. More efficient catalysis is provided
by such compounds as the sodium salts of the
short-chain alcohols (sodium methoxide or eth-
oxide), sodium glyceroxide, or anhydrous sodium
hydroxide, all at a level of about 0.5 % or less.
Reaction then proceeds at a much lower tempera-
ture ( 60
C), reaching completion within a few
minutes. This is a much more efficient technique
for random interesterification. Moreover, it per-
mits directed interesterification, in which the
reaction is conducted at such a low temperature
that the high-melting glycerides tend to crystallize
during the reaction. The highest melting fatty
acids are thus effectively removed, and equilibri-
um is displaced toward the formation and removal
Vol. 22
of even more of the high-melting glycerides. This
continues until no more high-melting acids re-
main in the reaction mix. The result is segregation
of the higher melting acids into a stearin fraction,
which can be removed by fractionation. Applica-
tion of this technique to sunflower oil gives an oil
with a lower content of saturated fatty acids and a
corresponding increase in polyunsaturated acids.
The use of sodium compounds as catalysts
requires that the oil be dry, neutral, and protected
by an inert atmosphere, since water, fatty acids,
and oxygen all deactivate the catalyst. A com-
mon procedure calls for carrying out the reaction
under vacuum so that water is removed rapidly. A
sodium-based catalyst cannot be recovered from
the reaction mixture because it is ultimately
converted to soap. Any active catalyst remaining
after interesterification is deactivated by the ad-
dition of a dilute acid (e.g., acetic acid). Sodium
salts and soaps are then removed by washing,
which is followed by a light earth bleaching and
final deodorization.
3.1.2.4. Fractionation
Fractionation entails separating a fat into frac-
tions with different melting ranges by crystalli-
zation and subsequent removal of the crystals
(! Fats and Fatty Oils, Chap. 7.). Such a process
might be carried out for various reasons: to
remove very high melting components (e.g., the
stearin from beef tallow), to concentrate PUFA
acids (as in removal of stearin from a directively
interesterified sunflower oil), or to select a frac-
tion with a relatively sharp melting range for use
as a hardstock component. The latter objective
requires two-stage fractionation involving re-
moval of both a stearin and an olein fraction to
leave a mid-fraction. The process has been ap-
plied to palm oil to obtain a fraction rich in
monooleodipalmitin and also to interesterified
blends of lauric-rich fats with fats rich in stearic
and palmitic residues, thereby producing a frac-
tion rich in monolaurodipalmitin or -distearin
glycerides.
Fractionation can be carried out either in a
solvent or ‘‘dry’’. Acetone, light hydrocarbons,
and methanol are used for solvent fractionation.
The fat is first dissolved by heating it in the
solvent, after which the solution is cooled to a
temperature at which crystallization takes place.
The temperature required depends on the oil
Vol. 22
being treated. In a typical palm-oil fractionation,
for instance, an acetone solution of the oil is
cooled to ca. 20
C to precipitate the stearin, then
to 0
C to precipitate the mid-fraction. The re-
sulting fat crystals are removed by filtration and
solvent is recovered by distillation. Solvent frac-
tionation gives a clean separation of the various
glycerides, but it is an expensive operation be-
cause of the specialized equipment required for
the handling and recovery of highly flammable
solvents. Normally it is applied only to fats for
products carrying a premium relative to ordinary
margarine (e.g., confectionery fats).
In dry fractionation, liquid components of
the oil blend (i.e., the olein) act in effect as
solvents for the solid components or stearin. This
means that ‘‘solvent’’ occluded in the separated
stearin cannot be removed by distillation as in
solvent fractionation. Instead, it remains as part
of the stearin composition and the resulting
separations are less clear-cut than in solvent
fractionation. In order to achieve maximum sep-
aration efficiency special care must be taken in
the choice of crystallization conditions. The rates
of cooling and stirring are particularly critical for
producing crystals with the best form for easy
separation.
Separation techniques other than filtration
may also be used to maximize separation of the
olein. One such technique is pressing, in which
slabs of stearin are squeezed between the plates
of a hydraulic press. This is particularly effective
for removing a small amount of olein from a large
amount of stearin, as in the preparation of palm
kernel stearin. Another valuable technique is the
Lanza separation. Here the crystal slurry is stirred
with an aqueous detergent solution, typically
sodium lauryl sulfate. The detergent solution
preferentially wets the solid fat crystals and
draws them into the aqueous phase. Olein is then
separated from the aqueous phase by centrifuga-
tion, leaving the stearin in the aqueous phase. The
stearin is recovered by heating this mixed phase
above the melting range of the stearin, followed
by further centrifugation.
3.2. The Aqueous Phase
The aqueous phase comprises ca. 15 % of a
conventional margarine but it can account for
60 % or more in a low-fat spread.
Margarines and Shortenings 255
3.2.1. The Aqueous Phase in Conventional
Margarines
In conventional margarine the aqueous phase
consists mainly of water, and its main function
is as a carrier of flavoring components. In some
parts of the world, special flavors are common
(cf. Section 2.1), but in the Western World
margarine is expected to taste as much like butter
as possible. Considerable research has been de-
voted to achieving this end. Most of the effort has
focussed on identifying the natural flavor com-
ponents in butter. This resulted initially in the
introduction of diacetyl and short-chain fatty
acids. Later work led to the use of the g- and
d-lactones of C8– C14 hydroxy fatty acids. Most
manufacturers now employ their own closely
guarded ‘‘flavor cocktails’’. Butter-like flavor is
enhanced by use in the aqueous phase of
skimmed milk that has been ripened with lactic
acid bacteria.
Another flavor-contributing component of the
aqueous phase is salt. The salt level must be
carefully adjusted to correspond to the prefer-
ences of a particular national market.
3.2.2. The Aqueous Phase in Low-Fat
Spreads
In low-fat spreads the aqueous phase not only
carries the flavor components but also contri-
butes to the structure of the product. Thus, with a
fat content  40 % it is necessary to invoke
special techniques to ensure adequate rigidity.
Rigidity can be achieved in two ways. A spread in
which the aqueous phase is essentially water, can
be stiffened by the use of powerful emulsifiers
which disperse the water more finely and stabi-
lize the resultant droplets. Such stable, highly
dispersed droplets augment the limited number
of fat crystals present in the system (cf. Chap. 4),
thereby increasing the effective size of the elastic
crystal network. The extent to which this princi-
ple can be applied is limited, however; an emul-
sion that is too stable adversely affects the
mouthfeel of the product, producing an initial
thick, heavy sensation that is followed by a rapid
watery breakdown. The alternative is to thicken
the aqueous phase by adding components that
either gel the water or increase its viscosity to
such an extent that the dispersed water droplets
256 Margarines and Shortenings
behave like semisolid particles. Components that
have been used for this purpose include gelatin,
caseinates derived from milk proteins, water-
soluble carbohydrate gums (e.g., carrageen and
locust bean gum), and modified starches. Addi-
tives are introduced at levels of 5 – 15 % depend-
ing on type. Together with the processing con-
ditions such additives can significantly affect the
mouthfeel of spreads, and the creamy breakdown
associated with conventional margarines is more
easily achieved in low-fat spreads in which
thickeners have been used than in one with an
unthickened aqueous phase.
3.3. Emulsifiers
Emulsifiers are essential to both conventional
margarines and low-fat spreads. They facilitate
dispersion of the aqueous phase and also stabilize
the resulting dispersion. A typical emulsifier
contains both polar and nonpolar groups. Since
the affinities of these groups for the two phases
differ, the emulsifier tends to concentrate at the
phase interface. This alters both the interfacial
tension and the interfacial viscosity, thus aiding
the formation and stabilization of droplets of
one phase dispersed within the other. Whether
the dispersion is one of water in oil or oil in
water depends on the relative number and
nature of polar and nonpolar groups, the so-called
hydrophilic – lypophilic balance (HLB). Emul-
sions are discussed in detail elsewhere
(! Emulsions).
The emulsifiers most widely employed in
margarine and other spreads are monoglycerides
and lecithins. In monoglycerides, polar character
is provided by two free hydroxyl groups, and
nonpolar character by the long-chain fatty acid
moiety. Monoglycerides are prepared by inter-
esterification of natural triglyceride oils with
glycerol and concentrated by distillation.
In lecithin, nonpolar character is again con-
ferred by long-chain fatty acid residues, but the
polar component is the phosphatidyl moiety at-
tached to the third hydroxyl group of glycerol
(! Lecithin). The lecithin most widely used in
margarine occurs as a natural component of
soybean oil and is separated from the oil at the
degumming stage of refining.
Margarines designed for special applications
(e.g., pastry) may incorporate specially selected
Vol. 22
emulsifiers to enhance particular end-use prop-
erties (see Section 5.1).
3.4. Minor Components
Minor components added to margarines include
antioxidants, coloring agents, preservatives, pH
regulators, and vitamins (! Foods, 3. Food Ad-
ditives, Section 3.6).
The preferred antioxidants are tocopherols,
which may be either synthetic or derived from
natural sources, but synthetic compounds such as
butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) or butylated
hydroxyanisole (BHA) are sometimes used in-
stead. The antioxidants pick up or release free
radicals in the course of assuming stable quinone
or hydroquinone configurations and thereby in-
terrupt the chain of free radical reactions respon-
sible for autoxidation (! Antioxidants). Natural
tocopherol antioxidants occur in most vegetable
oils, so that the use of antioxidants is generally
limited to fat blends consisting primarily of ani-
mal fats.
Coloring agents are usually carotenoids. Ex-
amples include b-carotene, either from palm oil
or synthetic, and annatto, a mixture of bixins
derived from the Central American fruit of that
name.
The most widely used preservative for the
control of biological activity is common salt, but
in some circumstances potassium sorbate is
added, particularly in low-fat spreads where
increased water content favors microbial growth.
Control of the pH may also be used to inhibit
biological activity. Control of pH is also neces-
sary in spreads in which the aqueous phase has
been thickened with proteins (e.g., caseinates)
because the resulting viscosity or elasticity is a
function of pH. Salts of weak acids (e.g., sodium
citrate or sodium phosphate) are used for this
purpose.
Most food control authorities require the ad-
dition of vitamins A (27 – 33 IU/g) and D
(2.8 – 3.5 IU/g) to margarine as a means of
assuring adequate nutritional value.
4. Processing
Margarine processing procedures are designed to
achieve three objectives:
Vol. 22
1. dispersion of the aqueous phase as a water-in-
oil emulsion throughout the fat phase,
2. formation of a fat crystal network to stabilize
the resulting emulsion and give the product
some degree of firmness, and
3. modification of the crystal network to produce
the desired firmness and confer plasticity.
Common procedures can be broadly classified
according to whether these objectives are
achieved independently (churn process) or si-
multaneously (votator process).
4.1. Churn Process
The churn process was the only one applied to
margarine production prior to the mid-1930s.
In the first stage, emulsion formation, the
aqueous phase and the fat phase, together with
minor ingredients, are introduced into a stirred
jacketed vessel at a temperature just above the
melting range. The stirrer consists of a pierced
plate that occupies the whole cross-section of the
vessel (Fig. 1). The two phases are then mixed
Figure 1. Emulsion churn for margarine production(repro-
duced with permission from [1]) a) Perforated steam coils;
b) Heating jacket outlet; c) Salt solution inlet; d) Milk inlet;
e) Oil inlet; f) Vents; g) Hinged flap; h) Inspection glass;
i) Stirrer with pierced plates; j) Heating jacket outlet; k)
Product outlet
Margarines and Shortenings 257
vigorously to produce a fine water-in-oil
emulsion.
In the second stage, crystal formation, the
emulsion is rapidly chilled by passage through
heat exchangers or by use of a drum cooler
(Fig. 2). In the drum cooler a thin layer of
emulsion is spread on the surface of a cooled
rotating drum and scraped off with a blade. As a
result of rapid cooling, crystal nuclei develop and
grow to form the network required for product
rigidity. This initial product is too brittle for
commercial use, however, and it must therefore
be subjected to plasticization, in which it under-
goes mechanical working (plodding) to break
down part of the crystal network. Appropriate
Figure 2. Cooling drum systems for margarine production
(reproduced with permission from [1]) A) Double-drum
system; B) Single-drum system with feeding rollera) Cooling
drum; b) Scraper; c) Collecting wagon; d) Trough; e) Feed
roller
258 Margarines and Shortenings
mechanical processes include extrusion through
a screw press, squeezing through a gap between
rollers, or agitation by rotating knife blades.
4.2. Votator Process
The term ‘‘Votator’’ was first coined by the
Girdler Company in the United States to describe
the continuous cooler – stirrer unit that they
introduced in 1936. A flow scheme for the votator
process is shown in Figure 3. Two votator units
are involved in margarine production, the A unit
and the C unit.
The A unit consists of a jacketed tube fitted
with a rotating shaft that fills most of the cross
section of the tube, leaving an annulus of 5 –
10 mm. This annulus is occupied by blades
attached to the rotating shaft and touching the
inner wall of the tube. The jacket is cooled by a
refrigerant such as liquid ammonia. The shaft is
rotated at high speed ( 500 rpm) and the prod-
uct mixture is forced through the annulus. It is
thus subjected to rapid cooling by contact with
the refrigerated walls of the jacket as well as to
high shear.
The C unit also consists of a jacketed tube with
a rotating shaft, but the shaft is smaller in diam-
eter relative to the cross section of the tube, so the
annulus is much wider. Moreover, the shaft is
fitted not with wall-scraping blades but with a
series of pegs. As the shaft rotates, the pegs move
between similar pegs attached to the inner wall of
the tube, subjecting the contents of the C unit to
mixing at controlled temperature but not to the
high shear conditions prevailing in the A unit.
The required proportions of fat and aqueous
phases may be continuously stirred in a premix
Figure 3. Schematic diagram of a votator plant with pre-
crystallization and recycling (Unilever) a) High-pressure
metering pump; b) C unit; c) Pump; d) A unit; e) B unit
Vol. 22
tank to create a loose emulsion suitable for
pumping into the votator line. Alternatively, the
components may be pumped from independent
holding vessels into the votator line through a
proportionating pump adjusted to produce the
required volume ratio.
The combination of high shear and rapid
cooling in the A unit results in a finely dispersed
emulsion with an even distribution of fine fat
crystals. Low shear agitation in the C unit permits
further growth of these crystals without the for-
mation of an interacting crystal network. Only
under subsequent quiescent conditions is further
crystal growth able to produce such a network.
Thus, it is the C unit that controls the ultimate
plasticity of the product. If all the crystal nuclei
emerging from the A unit were allowed to grow
into crystals, all contributing to the crystal net-
work, then the product would be too brittle.
A typical votator installation utilizes combi-
nations of A units and C units coupled in series.
The manufacturer selects a set of temperatures,
residence times, and agitation conditions specifi-
cally tailored to the mixture composition and the
required product type.
A further unit, the B unit, is necessary for
margarine that is to be packaged in a paper
wrapper. This unit consists of an open tube
corresponding in cross-section to the final
wrapped slab. The tube is without a rotating
shaft, so product passes through with minimum
agitation. This not only molds the product into
the required shape for packing but also provides
the degree of product firmness necessary for
handling in a wrapping machine.
Product that is to be packaged in tubs or
cartons is extruded directly into the container
from the last votator unit. Firming proceeds to
completion in the container during subsequent
storage. The success of this technique depends on
precise control of the degree of crystal network
formation in the processing line, i.e., on an
optimal balance of A- and C-unit working.
‘‘Over-working’’ (premature formation of a crys-
tal network, which is subsequently destroyed by
further mechanical working) produces a product
that is too liquid, because most of the crystalli-
zation takes place in the absence of an interactive
network. Such a product only becomes firm in the
tub after prolonged storage, if at all. At the other
extreme, too much potential for crystal growth
in product leaving the line leads to excessive
Vol. 22
posthardening and a birttle product. Neverthe-
less, some posthardening must occur in the tub,
since attempting to extrude stiffened product
would result in high back pressure along the line,
which would in turn interfere with the mechani-
cal working of the system.
The votator system is intended for continuous
operation, but it is nonetheless subject to occa-
sional stoppages, with breakdown of the packag-
ing equipment being the most common cause.
Interruption of throughput typically results in
product setting up in the votator line, with the
potential for considerable loss of product, time,
and energy. Consequently, the whole system (the
mixture composition and the lay-out of the pro-
cessing units) is designed to facilitate recycling
without altering the nature of the final product or
the settings of the processing parameters.
A satisfactory production line must also in-
clude provision for regular and rigorous cleaning
and sanitization to eliminate the possibility of
microbial contamination. This entails pipelines
for detergent solutions as well as steam lines for
equipment scalding. It is especially important to
avoid dead pockets that might trap partially
processed material and serve as isolated breeding
grounds for microorganisms.
5. Specialty Margarines and
Shortenings
Most margarines are intended for spreading on
bread, but some are also used in cooked foods,
including cakes and pastries, as well as in the
preparation of fried foods. Specialty margarines
exist for commercial use in the latter
applications.
5.1. Pastry Margarines
Pastry margarines are mainly used for short crust
pastry, cake mixes, and flaky pastry; i.e., flour
confections in which fat is a major ingredient.
Such baked goods differ considerably from
bread. In bread making, the object is to work
the dough so that it develops a gluten structure;
i.e., protein molecules within the flour grains are
encouraged to link up to form long chains and
extended sheets, providing the characteristic cel-
lular structure of bread. Fat is kept to a minimum
Margarines and Shortenings 259
in bread mixes because fat levels > 3 % interfere
with the development of gluten structure. In
short crust pastry the aim is reversed. Long
protein chains are not allowed to develop, result-
ing in a product that is crumbly and, unlike
bread, breaks easily into small fragments when
bitten. This is achieved by giving the pastry
mixture a relatively high fat content— ca. 30 %
or more. Individual grains of flour thereby be-
come coated and the gluten structure cannot
extend from grain to grain. Baked pastry consists
essentially of an aggregate of partially gelati-
nized starch granules cemented together with fat.
The fat must therefore be easily and intimately
mixed into the flour, and it must also have suffi-
cient solid content to contribute to the rigid
structure of the finished pastry. This calls for a
fat blend containing relatively high-melting
components together with a reasonable propor-
tion of liquid fat, thereby providing plasticity
over a wide temperature range. Animal fats such
as lard and beef suet have traditionally been used
for this purpose, but more precise control of
favorable properties is possible through the use
of blended oils, including palm oil and hydroge-
nated vegetable oils. Water is essential only as a
flavor carrier. Indeed, too much water renders the
pastry sticky due to overgelatinization of the
starch. The final water content of a mix must
usually be adjusted by the baker to suit a partic-
ular flour, so margarine especially designed for
short crust pastry frequently contains less water
than conventional margarines.
The products referred to as shortenings con-
tain no water. Soft, pumpable shortenings
have been developed to meet the needs of
large-scale bakers and confectioners, who must
handle ingredients in bulk. Such shortenings are
collected from the votator line in bulk containers.
They are delivered in tankers and stored in bulk
storage tanks. Storage and transport containers
are held at 20 – 25
C to maintain a pumpable
consistency.
Cake mixes resemble short crust pastry mix-
tures in that they yield a product with a rigid, yet
easily fragmented texture. However, a cake mix
must rise (i.e., expand) during baking to produce
a foam of air bubbles entrapped in baked dough.
This effect depends upon the creaming power of
the dough, i.e., its ability to entrap air during
the mixing process. Here the water phase is an
asset: not only does water dissolve air during the
260 Margarines and Shortenings
mixing stage but it is also converted to steam
during the baking stage, thus increasing the
number and volume of entrapped bubbles. Emul-
sifiers also enhance the creaming effect, so that
cake margarines and shortenings often have a
high monoglyceride content (2 – 5 % compared
to 0.5 % in conventional margarines). This is the
basis for the term high ratio shortenings [17].
Such a blend permits incorporation at a higher
level of water into the mix as well as a higher ratio
of sugar to flour, resulting not only in a greater
volume increase but also a tenderer crumb and
one that is less liable to go stale on keeping.
The creaming effect is inhibited by fat blends
that contain a preponderance of a single glyceride
species. Natural lard, for instance, is not ideal for
cake making because of its high oleodipalmitin
content, but its performance is greatly improved
if this glyceride is broken down by interesterifi-
cation [18].
The characteristic texture of flaky pastry in
which thin layers of pastry are separated by layers
of air, results from a special cake structure in
which air is present not in the form of spherical
bubbles but as laminae separating continuous
layers of pastry. To achieve this the margarine
or shortening is not intimately mixed into the
flour as in a normal cake mix but remains in
discrete, evenly distributed layers. In one process
the fat is added to the dough mix in small lumps.
The mixture is then rolled out, flattening the
lumps of fat into layers. In an alternative process
the dough is rolled out first and the margarine or
shortening is subsequently spread over its sur-
face. A further layer of dough is then rolled on
top, followed by another layer of fat, and so on.
During baking, air and water in the margarine
layers expand, forcing the dough layers apart and
producing a flaky texture. Margarine designed
for this application must be plastic enough to be
spread or rolled into thin layers, but not so soft as
to diffuse into the surrounding dough layers
before starch gelatinization has set these into
flakes. Thus, a fat blend is required that offers
a wide range of plasticity but a limited proportion
of liquid oil [19].
5.2. Frying
Butter has traditionally been a popular medium
for frying, so it is not surprising that attempts
Vol. 22
have been made to use margarine for the same
purpose. However, the performance of the two
substances in this application is not the same.
Whereas butter can be heated without difficulty
to the high temperatures required for frying
(140 – 200
C), margarine tends to spatter. Not
only does this cause anything in the vicinity of the
frying pan to become covered with fat droplets,
but spattering is also a potential fire hazard, since
the aerosol of fine fat droplets is highly
flammable.
Spattering occurs because the fat crystals that
help to stabilize the emulsion disappear as the
margarine is heated above its melting range. The
aqueous-phase droplets thus coalesce into rela-
tively large drops. During frying, water is heated
well above its boiling point. Since the water
drops are suspended in liquid oil, there is little
chance for the nucleation that would initiate
evaporation. Instead the drops become super-
heated. When nucleation eventually does occur
(e.g., by contact with the walls of the frying pan),
the drops vaporize very rapidly. The result is a
minor explosion as a small volume of liquid
water is converted to a significantly larger vol-
ume of steam over a very short period of time.
Spattering is a consequence of numerous drops
undergoing this violent transition over a short
period of time.
In butter the water droplets are stabilized by
encapsulation in casein micelles. Coalescence is
thus inhibited and the droplets can diffuse to the
surface, where they evaporate as foam. This
desirable state can be approached in margarine
by the use of suitable emulsifiers (e.g., the citrate
esters of mono- and diglycerides, fatty acid esters
of polyglycerol, and lecithin) [20].
Low-fat spreads are unsuitable for frying not
only because of their high water content, but also
because the gums or proteins used as thickeners
are denatured at frying temperature and form
unpleasant charred residues on the bottom of the
pan.
Shortenings and frying oils do not contain
an aqueous phase, so spattering problems do
not arise. Spattering occurs here only when
water is introduced along with the food that is
to be fried (e.g., as lumps of ice on frozen
food). In these cases the physical and chemical
properties of the fat blend are thus the only
factors to be considered in the choice of a frying
medium.
Vol. 22 Margarines and Shortenings 261

As noted in Section 2.2.7, liquid oils are
unsaturated, and therefore more susceptible to
oxidation than saturated solid fats. Choice of a
suitable blend for frying is therefore reduced to
achieving a balance between the handling con-
venience of a liquid oil and the oxidative stability
of a solid fat.
The domestic user tends to favor liquid oil,
especially for deep frying. It is easier to heat a pan
of liquid oil on a domestic stove than to melt a
block of solid fat. Furthermore, the domestic user
is not overly concerned with oxidative stability,
since a given batch of oil is only used for a limited
number of fryings. The favorable nutritional
properties of liquid oils also have a strong influ-
ence on domestic users.
For the industrial fryer, on the other hand,
oxidative stability is of major importance
because the useful lifetime of an oil is an impor-
tant economic factor. Industrial frying is a con-
tinuous process and is thus dependent upon
keeping the oxidative state of the oil at an ac-
ceptable level. Ideally, an equilibrium is attained
between removal of used oil from the fryer by
incorporation into the fried product and addition
of fresh oil; the level of oxidation products in the
oil in the fryer thus remains constant. The rate of
oxidation must be equal to the rate of turnover of
the oil, a requirement that can to some extent be
met by proper design of the fryer and adjusting
the rate of throughput of product. Nevertheless,
the oxidative stability of the oil is also a major
factor.
Thus, for the industrial fryer, the preferred
frying medium is a solid or semisolid fat. Solid
fats present a minor inconvenience in that they
are liable to congeal in pipelines and holding
tanks, but this problem is readily overcome by the
installation of suitable heating equipment.
Economic considerations are also important
for small-scale commercial fryers, such as res-
taurants, canteens, and fast-food shops. Howev-
er, a chef is in more direct contact with the frying
process than is the quality control manager of a
large frying operation, permitting a quicker re-
action to changes in product quality. The choice
of fat is therefore influenced heavily by personal
preference and local tradition.
6. Packaging
Packing units for margarine vary in size from the
very small individual packs used in restaurants
(containing only a few grams of product),
through domestic packs (250, 500 g), larger
packs (25, 50 kg) for commercial bakers and
caterers, up to tanker loads of several tonnes for
industrial users.
Wrapping materials for retail packs should
provide a barrier to both light and air to inhibit
autoxidative deterioration, and they must be
impermeable to fat and water to prevent leakage
and consequent spoilage. For hard-blend margar-
ines, greaseproof parchment paper adequately
serves the latter purpose, but aluminum foil is
also widely used because of its impermeability to
both light and air. Soft blend margarines and low-
fat spreads require rigid containers such as tubs
made from plastic or waxed cardboard. In all
cases the packaging material must be devoid of
potentially harmful components that might mi-
grate into the contents. Thus, plastic containers or
wrappers must not contain residual monomers,
fillers, or other harmful materials. Appropriate
specifications and tests have been drawn up by
food regulation authorities (! Foods, 4. Food
Packaging, Chap. 8.).

Table 3. Annual consumption of butter and margarine (103 t)*

United States Western Europe

Year Butter Margarine Total Butter Margarine Total

1985 224 (20) 908 (80) 1132 1226 (44) 1569 (56) 2795
1986 207 (18) 919 (82) 1126 1189 (43) 1587 (57) 2776
1987 165 (15) 925 (85) 1090 1141 (42) 1599 (58) 2740
1988 155 (15) 907 (85) 1062 1081 (41) 1601 (60) 2682
1989 (projected) 147 (14) 900 (86) 1047 1030 (39) 1610 (61) 2640
*
Based on information from the Office of Agricultural Affairs, U.S. Embassy, London, and from Unilever Department of Statistics, Unilever
House, Rotterdam. Values in parentheses indicate percentages of total.
262 Margarines and Shortenings Vol. 22

Table 4. Weekly consumption of spreadable fats (grams per person) in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands*

United Kingdom Netherlands

Low-fat Low-fat
Year Butter Margarine Spreads Total Butter Margarine Spreads Total

1975 159 74 6 239

1976 147 88 6 241
1977 133 99 6 238
1978 130 99 6 235
1979 128 102 9 239 49 177 36 262
1980 116 108 11 235 51 179 35 265
1981 105 116 14 235 50 178 35 263
1982 91 122 17 230 51 174 36 261
1983 94 116 14 224 50 174 36 260
1984 82 116 20 218 56 171 37 264
1985 79 108 26 213 58 169 38 265
1986 65 116 37 218 59 166 37 262
1987 60 113 37 210 59 162 36 257
*
Based on information from the Office of the Agricultural Counsellor, The Royal Netherlands Embassy, London, and from The Food
Research Association, Leatherhead, United Kingdom.

7. Economic Aspects 6 W. Normann, Chem. Umsch. 30 (1923) 250 – 251.

Tables 3 and 4 show the changes in pattern of
consumption of butter, margarine and low fat
spreads over recent years in the geographical
areas for which figures are available.
The decrease in total fat consumption is evi-
dent in all regions. This reduction is mainly at the
expense of butter relative to the other spreads.
This is dramatically apparent in the United King-
dom figures. However, the United Kingdom was
traditionally an area of high butter consumption.
The effect is not apparent in the Netherlands
figures where butter consumption has been low
compared to margarine for some years. The
increase in consumption of low-fat spreads com-
pared to conventional margarine is, however,
apparent in both those countries.
References
General References
1 A. J. C. Andersen, P. N. Williams: Margarine, Pergamon
Press, London 1965.
2 S. F. Riepma: The Story of Margarine, Public Affairs
Press, Washington 1970.
3 R. J. Hamilton, A. Bhati (eds.): Fats and Oils, Chemistry
and Technology, Applied Science, London 1980.
Specific References
4 W. Normann, GB 1 515, 1903.
5 C. Friedel, J. R. Crafts, Annalen 133 (1865) 207 – 211.
7 E. W. Eckey, Ind. Eng. Chem. 40 (1948) 1183 – 1190.
8 Official Methods of American Oil Chem. Soc.
Cc13b45, American Oil Chem. Soc., Champagne, Illinois
1987.
9 Official Methods of American Oil Chem. Soc. Cd10–57,
American Oil Chem. Soc., Champagne, Illinois 1987.
10 A. J. Haighton, L. F. Vermass, C. den Hollender, J. Am.
Oil. Chem. Soc. 48 (1971) 7 – 15.
11 D. Chapman, Chem. Revs. 62 (1962) 433 – 456.
12 A. J. Haighton, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 36 (1959) 345 –
348.
13 D. Waddington in R. J. Hamilton, A. Bhati (eds.): Fats
and Oils, Chemistry and Technology, Applied Science,
London 1980, pp. 25 – 45.
14 D. R. Marker, L. C. Brown, L. C. Wiederman, J. Am. Oil
Chem. Soc. 35 (1958) 130 – 133.
15 J. M. Denman, A. M. Beers, J. Texture Stud. 18 (1988)
303 – 318.
16 P. N. Williams: Linear and Non-linear Programming in
Industry, Pitman, London 1967.
17 J. Moncrieff, Baker’s Dig. 44 (1970) 60.
18 Swift and Co., US 2 625 478, 1953 (K. F. Mattel, F. A.
Norris).
19 E. A. McGill, Baker’s Dig. 49 (1975), 28.
20 Refining Unincorp., US 2 640 780, 1953 (M. Matlikow).
Further Reading
G. S. Breck, S. C. Bhatia: Handbook of Industrial Oil and Fat
Products, CBS Publ., Delhi 2008.
S. R. Euston: Dairy Substitutes, ‘‘Kirk Othmer Encyclopedia
of Chemical Technology’’, 5th edition, John Wiley &
Sons, Hoboken, NJ, online DOI: 10.1002/
0471238961.0401091808011816.a01.pub2.
Vol. 22 Margarines and Shortenings 263

F. D. Gunstone: Oils and Fats in the Food Industry, Black- R. D. O’Brien: Fats and Oils – Formulating and Processing for
well, Oxford 2008. Applications, 3rd ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL 2009.
F. D. Gunstone (ed.): Rapeseed and Canola Oil, Blackwell F. Shahidi, A. E. Bailey (eds.): Bailey’s Industrial Oil & Fat
Pub, Oxford 2004. Products, 6th ed., Wiley-Interscience, New York 2005.