ABSTRACT
Fats and oils are the raw materials for liquid oils, shortenings, margarines, and other specialty or tailored products that are functional ingredients in food products prepared by food processors and restaurants and in the home. Humans have used fats and oils for food and a variety of other applications since prehistoric times, as they were easily isolated from their source. For example, fatty tissues from animals liberate free-floating fats on being boiled, whereas oil can be pressed from olives and oilseeds. Fats and oils found utility because of their unique properties. These ingredients were found to add flavor, lubricity, texture, and satiety to foods. They have also been found to have a major role in human nutrition. Fats and oils are the highest energy source of the three basic foods (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats), and many contain fatty acids essential for health that are not manufactured by the human body.
