Trans fat ban may hit US demand for soya oil

A US plan to ban artificial trans fats in processed foods could hit demand for as much as 15 per cent of the country's soya oil, an industry official estimated on Thursday, although analysts saw a limited market impact as use has already fallen sharply.

The US Food and Drug Administration proposed on Thursday banning the fats in foods ranging from cookies to frozen pizza, citing the risk of heart disease. Trans fats are used to help extend the shelf life or improve the taste or texture of some foods.

The oilseed and food-processing industries had been phasing out trans fats for several years, reducing consumption of hydrogenated soya oil to about 900,000 kilograms, or about 15 per cent of total soya oil consumption, said Richard Galloway, a consultant to the United Soybean Board.

That was down from 50 per cent as recently as 2005, Galloway said.

"At this point, a lot of the impact on the consumption of soya bean oil has already occurred," said Anne Frick, a senior oilseeds analyst with Jefferies Bache.

According to the Grocery Manufacturers Association, food manufacturers have voluntarily lowered the amounts of trans fats in their food products by more than 73 per cent since 2005. The FDA said the average daily intake of trans fats by Americans fell from 4.6 grams in 2003 to 1 gram last year.