COMPOSITION OF REPRESENTATIVE SALATRIM FAT PREPARATIONS

SALATRIM is a family of structured triacylglycerols containing at leas t one short-chain fatty acid and one saturated long-chain fatty acid ( predominantly stearate) on each glycerol. The mixtures are prepared by the interesterification of hydrogenated vegetable oils such as soy or canola, with triacetin and/or tripropionin and/or tributyrin. Qualita tive and quantitative analyses were conducted on five SALATRIM prepara tions. Qualitatively, several triacylglycerols are common to various m embers of the SALATRIM family. Approximately 90% of the total mass of the SALATRIM preparations is accounted for in positively identified tr iacylglycerols. Free fatty acids, phytosterols, and tocopherols accoun t for an additional 0.4-0.8% of the mass of the SALATRIM preparations. The triacylglycerol distribution is in excellent agreement with the p redicted distribution based on the fatty acid composition of the start ing material and supports the concept of random distribution of the fa tty acids in interesterified oils. Interesterified oils were further r efined by distillation, to yield final product, which captured nearly 100% acylglycerols. No unexpected compounds were detected. Supporting the predictable nature of the interesterification reaction, it is conc luded that the SALATRIM family is composed of a series of randomly est erified triacylglycerols containing a mixture of short- and long-chain fatty acids.