Olive Oil Processing Course
This processing course was run again at the Simunovich Olive oil estate in April 2008. 32 people attended the two day course on site at the modern and high-tech premises of Simunovich Olive estate. Attendees enjoyed an excellent overview by Leandro Ravetti from Modern Olives in Australia. Shane Hopgood gave a very practical approach to implementing a Food Safety programme involving a comprehensive approach to hazard identification. Margaret Edwards gave her now polished presentation on tasting and sensory critique of oils. Once again the hospitality at Simunovich in Bombay was exceptional and the dinner at Bracu was superb. All readers should try this fantastic restaurant.
Trans Fats-Mechanism
Trans fats may promote cardiovascular disease by triggering inflammatory processes in the cells lining blood vessels. In an attempt to understand what effect the increased incorporation would have on the cells, the researchers studied markers of inflammation and signs of dysfunction in the cells. Increases were noted in several inflammation biomarkers. See the book review also in this edition of the journal.
Source. British Journal of Nutrition, April 2008, Vol. 99, Issue 04 723-731 Lipids & functional foods.
Functional Foods and edible oils Conference (Nov. 11-12th 2008)
The printed brochure is now available for people who prefer hard copy material. Also the updated programme and registration details are available on the website.
www.foodworks.co.nz/oilsfats/ or www.foodworks.co.nz/ffoods
People
Dr Rod Mailer ( President ISF congress 2009) has been awarded the Timothy Mounts Award by AOCS. Congratulations to Rod in recognition of his escellent work in characterizing and certifying Australian olive oil.
Wee Sim Choo who was awarded an Oils and Fats travel grant to attend the AOCS conference, is an honoured student in the latest AOCS ‘Inform’ journal.
Shane Lal (Treasurer) is now employed at Hubbard Foods in Auckland.
Cholesterol
The idea that cholesterol plays a key role in heart disease is so tightly woven into modern medical thinking that it is no longer considered open to question. A recent drug trial on Vytorin may confuse the issue. Vytorin is a combination of cholesterol-lowering drugs one called Zetia and the other a statin called Zocor. The two drugs lower LDL cholesterol by different mechanisms. They expected the double-barrel therapy to be synergistic in lowering LDL – which it did but it did not slow the accumulation of fatty plaque in the arteries.
Gary Taubes, the controversial author of “Good Calories, Bad Calories”, challenges the dogma of the Cholesterol Hypothesis. Taubes questions whether it is the LDL-cholesterol lipoprotein lowering per se that is crucial but perhaps there are other combination effects such as anti-inflammation. Statins are antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents which are considered a vital factor in heart disease.
He is asking for a reconsideration of the science behind lipoproteins/inflammation in coronary heart disease as an alternative to blind acceptance of long-held dogma.
The whole area of inflammation and human conditions in relation to food, nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals is intriguing and worthy of further research.
Laurence Eyres, FNZIFST