Intersterification of rapessed oil with anhydrous milk fat and its stearin fraction. I. Modifications of composition

Milk fat in human diet is associated with cardiovascular diseases due to its high content in saturated fatty acids and cholesterol. Most vegetable oils are much healthier as they are rich in unsaturated fatty acids (1,2).
Lipase-catalysed interesterification of oils and fats has arisen as an alternative to hydrogenation or chemical processes to produce margarine and shortenings (3), notably because they do not give rise to undesirable trans fatty acids (4). The enzyme exchanges fatty acids from one triglyceride to another, resulting in a redistribution of fatty acids species. For such a reaction, the lipase of Thermomyces lanuginosa was shown to be an efficient tool in solvent-free fat blends batches and micro-aqueous conditions (5). Enzymatic interesterification can thus be used to enrich “hard” fats with unsaturated fatty acids (6,7). As an illustration, rapeseed oil (RO) (a choice source of unsaturation-rich residues) was used in the present study to enrich anhydrous milk fat (AMF) with unsaturated C18 fatty acids (FA) (oleic, linoleic and linolenic acids). Comparatively, one “harder” fraction of AMF underwent the same reaction. The physico-chemical properties modifications induced by the reaction were followed. The compositional changes are reported in this first part and the consequent physical modifications are presented in a second part.