ABSTRACT
I. Introduction.......................................................................................................................... 873 II. Genetic Engineering of Plants ............................................................................................. 874 III. Example of Laurate Canola ................................................................................................. 875 IV. Applications for Food Lipids............................................................................................... 876
A. Natural Limitations ...................................................................................................... 876 B. Practical Limitations .................................................................................................... 877 C. Target Crops................................................................................................................. 879 D. Target Traits................................................................................................................. 880
1. Short-Chain Saturates............................................................................................ 880 2. Naturally Solid Fats .............................................................................................. 881 3. Yield...................................................................................................................... 882 4. Removing Negatives ............................................................................................. 882 5. Other Lipid Targets............................................................................................... 883
E. Nature of Incremental Progress ................................................................................... 883 V. Identification of Utility and Value ........................................................................................ 883
A. Market-Driven Product Development.......................................................................... 883 1. Fatty Acid Strategies............................................................................................. 883 2. Triglyceride Strategies .......................................................................................... 888 3. Investigations Driven by Purported Health Benefits to the Consumer ................ 892
B. Discovery of Novel Utility .......................................................................................... 894 1. Conventional Wisdom versus Structured Triglycerides ....................................... 894 2. Laurate Canola: A Case Study ............................................................................. 894
VI. Prospects and Summary....................................................................................................... 897 References ..................................................................................................................................... 898
A new oilseed crop was introduced commercially in the southern United States in the fall of 1994. The crop looked no different from normal varieties of Brassica napus canola. The farmer cultivated and harvested the crop without departing from standard canola harvesting practice. The oilseed meal, after crushing, was essentially the same as regular canola meal and, indeed, was treated simply as standard canola meal for use in animal feeds. The resulting vegetable oil, however, was unique and different from any previously available for either food or industrial uses [1].
