Crisco

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File:Crisco Cookbook 1912.jpg

Cover of the original Crisco cookbook, 1912

Crisco is a brand of shortening produced by the J. M. Smucker Co. that is popular in the United States. It was first introduced on the market by June 1911 by Procter & Gamble and was the first shortening to be made entirely of vegetable oil. Crisco is commonly used as a synonym for all shortening. However, olive, cooking, and baking oil and a cooking spray are also produced under the Crisco name.

Hydrogenation of organic substances in gas form was discovered by Sabatier in the late 19th century and while in liquid form was patented by Normann in 1903. Procter & Gamble's business manager John Burchenal was contacted by and hired chemist Edwin C. Kayser, former chemist for Joseph Crosfield and Sons (who had acquired Normann's patent so as to produce soap), who patented two processes to hydrogenate cottonseed oil, which ensures the fat remains solid at normal storage temperatures. Their initial intent was to completely harden oils for use as raw material for making soap. Since the product looked like lard, they began selling it as a food. After abandoning the names "Krispo" and "Cryst" for trademark and religious reasons, this product became known as Crisco, with the name deriving from the Spanish word Criscol which means melting pot.

Further success came from the marketing technique of giving away free cookbooks with every recipe calling for Crisco. Crisco vegetable oil was introduced in 1960. In 1976 Procter & Gamble introduced sunflower oil under the trade name Puritan Oil, which was marketed as a lower-cholesterol alternative. In 1988 Puritan Oil became 100% canola oil.

Procter & Gamble divested the Crisco (oil and shortening) brand (along with Jif peanut butter) in a spinoff to their stockholders, followed by an immediate merger with the J. M. Smucker Co. in 2002.

Changes in fat content

In April 2004 Smucker introduced "Crisco Zero Grams Trans Fat Per Serving All-Vegetable Shortening," which contained fully-hydrogenated palm oil blended with liquid vegetable oils to yield a shortening much like the original Crisco. From January 24, 2007 all Crisco shortening products were reformulated to contain less than one gram of trans fat per serving; the separately marketed trans-fat free version introduced in 2004 was consequently discontinued. As of 2010 Crisco consists of a blend of soybean oil, fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil, and partially hydrogenated soybean and cottonseed oils. According to the product information label, one 12 g serving of Crisco contains 3 g of saturated fat, 0g of trans fat, 6 g of polyunsaturated fat, and 2.5 g of monounsaturated fat. It is claimed that this reformulated Crisco has the same cooking properties and flavor as the original version of the product.

According to the FDA, "Food manufacturers are allowed to list amounts of trans fat with less than 0.5 gram (1/2 g) per serving as 0 (zero) on the Nutrition Facts panel."

Kream Krisp

While Kayser's patents where filed in 1910 and granted in 1915, with Crisco appearing on the market in 1911, Hugh Moore, chief chemist for Berlin Mills Company, filed his patents by 1914 and granted in 1914 and 1916, with the vegetable shortening later trademarked in 1915 as Kream Krisp appearing on the market in 1914. Procter & Gamble became aware of the competition by February 1915 and Burchenal contacted Berlin Mills claiming that they where infringing on P&G's patents and suggesting they meet to discuss the issue. When this failed P&G filed suit against Berlin Mills, the litigation being known as "Procter and Gamble vs. The Brown Company" (Berlin Mills Co. v. Procter & Gamble Co., 254 U.S. 156 (1920)), since at some point Berlin Mills Co. became The Brown Company.

Controversy

Some nutritionists argue that while the formula has been changed to remove the trans fatty acids, the fully hydrogenated oil used to replace them may not be good for health. Crisco and similar low-trans-fat products are formed by the interesterification of a mixture of fully-hydrogenated oils and partially-hydrogenated oils. The composition of the resultant triglycerides is random, and may contain combinations of fatty acids not commonly found in nature. A recent study showed that interesterified fat increased volunteers' blood sugar by 20 percent while simultaneously lowering the body's HDL cholesterol.

Since cotton crops are under far less chemical regulation by the FDA than other crops used specifically for food, many pesticides or chemicals can be used on them that are illegal for use on food crops. Such toxins derived from cottonseed can then enter into the food chain via this legal loophole in the regulation of food and chemicals, possibly leading to consumption of significantly elevated amounts of pesticides or chemicals.

External links

• Official website
• Harvard School of Public Health's webpage on Trans-fat

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