How margarine is made.

if it's under .5 g, they don't have to label it as partially hydrogenated.

I missed this. This is factually incorrect.

If there is partially hydrogenated oil in the product, in any quantity, it must be listed in ingredients. The "loophole" you're talking about is that if they use a small amount of hydrogenated oil that adds less than 0.5g of trans fat to a serving of the product, they can list "0 g trans fat."

However, again - if hydrogenated oil is one of the ingredients, in any quantity at all, it must appear in the ingredients list.

http://no-trans-fats.tripod.com/
"L48. Is it possible for a food product to list the amount of trans fat as 0 g on the Nutrition Facts label if the ingredient list indicates that it contains “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil?”

Answer: Yes. Food manufacturers are allowed to list amounts of trans fat with less than 0.5 gram (½ g) as 0 (zero) on the Nutrition Facts label. As a result, consumers may see a few products that list 0 gram trans fat on the label, while the ingredient list will have “shortening” or “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” on it. This means the food contains very small amounts (less than 0.5 g) of trans fat per serving."

http://lowfatcooking.about.com/od/faqs/f/hydrogenated.htm
"There are two reasons why foods containing hydrogenated oils may be labeled trans-fat free, or list 0g trans fats on the label. First, items that list partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredients but contain less than 0.5g of trans fats per serving are considered by the government to be trans-fat free. A good example of this would be commercial peanut butter, which contains a tiny amount of partially hydrogenated oil to prevent separation. The problem with this definition, though, is that if you eat more than the stated serving size, those fractions of a gram add up, and you are most certainly consuming trans fats. Second, products that contain fully hydrogenated oils are trans-fat free."

Lastly:

http://www.foodfacts.com/NutritionFacts/Milk-and-milk-products/Country-Crock-Spreadable-Margarine--oz/5929

skim over those ingredients for me. Country Crock does indeed have partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil.

so... you done yet?

That's an old product. Country Crock hasn't made that in quite some time. Here's their current "original" spread:



Note the "no hydrogenated oil" label.

Here is the full ingredient list:

Vegetable Oil Blend (Soybean Oil, Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil), Water, Whey (Milk), Salt, Mono and Diglycerides, Soy Lecithin, (Potassium Sorbate, Calcium Disodium EDTA), Citric Acid, Vitamin A Palmitate, Beta Carotene (Color), Natural and Artificial Flavor, Cholecalciferol (Vitamin D3).

No hydrogenated oil. No ingredients that contain any trans fat. That means zero trans fat.

Yes, it is solid at room temperature. So is coconut oil. Being solid at room temperature does not mean it has trans fat. I've never heard that myth before, but it's an interesting one.

Nom Nom Nom....I love CC!

Nom Nom Nom....I love CC!

My dad never has butter, but uses the Churn Style CC. Tastes pretty decent, but it's not butter. Mmmm butter.

if it's under .5 g, they don't have to label it as partially hydrogenated. they can call it whatever they want. check out their website - nowhere does it say there is NO trans fat! They simply say 0g of trans fat - which is the EXACT loophole we were talking about earlier.

believe what you want dude.

I just bought a bag of frozen broccoli. It says 0g trans fat. That means it might have up to 0.5g of trans fat! It doesn't say NO TRANS FAT!

Sheesh. Believe whatever you want, but don't lie to people. Country Crock, and many other vegetable oil spreads, have zero trans fat. In fact they have less trans fat than butter, because 2-5% of bovine fat is trans fat.

There are reasons to avoid oil spreads such as Country Crock, but trans fat content is not one of them. If you believe it contains trans fat, you are mistaken.

you literally make me want to pull my hair out. you're so absolutely certain but you're wrong and it's really sad. (i know you guys feel the same way about me so we're even)

how bout this, we know the 0g thing is a loophole right? so then why does CC use 0g on their products if it's a known loophole? why don't you email them and ask if there are any trans fats, and see if you get an answer besides "0g" or "zero"

in any case, enjoy your daily "support fake, processed, nutritionally deficient foods" thread. I'm out.

If the cat won't eat it, is it good for us?

huh??

No you heard it right. Crazy cat lady logic right here

Nom Nom Nom....I love CC!

My dad never has butter, but uses the Churn Style CC. Tastes pretty decent, but it's not butter. Mmmm butter.

I've always thought that butter was fairly flavorless....but, it's been a LONG time since I've had any LOL

I had both butter and margarine out on the counter. Stripes (our cat) would lick the butter and leave little tongue marks on it, but NEVER the margarine. We quit eating margarine.. If the cat won't eat it, is it good for us? Besides, same number of calories either way, why not eat what tastes better.

Normally I prefer butter, but if forced to choose between margarine or something the cat has licked, I'm picking margarine every time! :laugh:

Who won the margarine debate has anyone been crowned the weiner yet?

If you want to go totally unprocessed eat lard. Debate solved. I WIN I WIN!

I had both butter and margarine out on the counter. Stripes (our cat) would lick the butter and leave little tongue marks on it, but NEVER the margarine. We quit eating margarine.. If the cat won't eat it, is it good for us? Besides, same number of calories either way, why not eat what tastes better.

Normally I prefer butter, but if forced to choose between margarine or something the cat has licked, I'm picking margarine every time! :laugh:

Am I the only person who doesn't mind if their cat licks their food? Or am I just that poor that I can't afford to throw out what the cat licks? Maybe that.

Maybe this will help to explain why it is so bad for you. This is the hydrogenation process.

http://www.stop-trans-fat.com/how-is-margarine-made.html

We've been through this. Most oil spreads on the market these days have no hydrogenated oils. The ones that do usually have very very little.