Composition of fatty acids of cooking oils available in the market

Fats and oils have been the part of diet since the beginning of human life. Sunflower, soybean, canola and corn oils are well known cooking oils used in our daily life. They belong to class compounds called lipids, which are triglycerides of fatty acids. The present study was designed to evaluate and compare the fatty acid composition in different cooking oils available in the market in comparison to the fatty acid profile of the pure seeds of respective varieties. Oil was extracted from the seeds by solvent extraction method. The oil percentage of corn varieties, composite-20, maize mixture and corn double cross was 4.8%, 5.1 % and 6%. Oil percentage of sunflower varieties, FH-131 and FH-86 was 40.3% and 39.9%. Oil percentage of four varieties of canola, oscar, DGL, dunkled, rainbow and one soybean variety, Faisal soybean was 41%, 42%,44.5%, 42.3% and 21.5% respectively. Fatty acid composition of oils was determined by gas chromatograph. The fatty acid composition of three maize varieties, composite-20, maize mixture and corn double cross and market sample, Rafhan corn oil was as C 16:0 15.74, 16.94, 16.28,14.99, C18:0 2.07, 2.49, 1.88, 2.32, C18:1 29.80, 2.49, 1.88, 2.32, C18:2, 51.21, 48.79, 50.23, 52.50, C18:3 ,1.16, 1.22, 1.35, 1.77% acids. Results showed that Rafhan corn oil was pure corn oil. Fatty acid analysis of sunflower varieties, FH-131, FH-86 and market samples, Kisan sunflower oil, Sufi sunflower oil, and Sundrop sunflower oil showed that they contained C16:0, 6.89, 7.50, 10.13, 7.97, 5.75%, C18:0, 2.51, 3.49, 3.26, 3.43, 1.74%, C18:1, 42.89, 51.15, 42.71, 49.57, 63.32%, C18:2, 47.69, 37.28, 34.91, 36.91, 19.76% and C18:3, 0.0, 0.55, 8.29, 1.82, 8.64% acids. The comparison showed that Sufi sunflower oil was pure while some sort of blending was found in Kisan sunflower and Sundrop sunflower oils due to the presence of significant high percentage of linolenic acid in both these oils which was found nil or in fractions in standard sunflower varieties. Among the canola varieties under study, only Oscar canola was found having erucic acid less than 2%, so it was taken as standard. Fatty acid composition oscar canola variety, and market samples Seasons canola oil, Rafhan canola oil, Kashmir canola oil showed that they contained C16:0 5.94, 5.71, 6.39, 5.03, C18:0 2.05, 2.09, 1.90, 1.90, C18:1 61.57, 57.38, 59.19, 58.98, C18:2 19.21, 24.45, 22.29, 20.28, C18:3 8.07, 8.12, 8.7, 11.55, C20:1 1.89, 1.49, 1.34, 1.46 and C22:1 1.27, 0.46, 0.0 and 0.0% acids. Fatty acid composition of Oscar canola variety and market samples showed no significant difference. It is, therefore, clear that all the market Faisal soybean variety end market samples, Super Habib soybean, Kashmir gold soybean, and Soya Supreme soybean oils contained C16:0 14.15, 12.75, 13.27, 13.03, C18:0 4.23, 4.25, 4.09, 4.32, CI8:1 23.25, 25.62, 20.61, 22.29, C18:2 50.99, 49.02, 52.46, 51.20 and C18:3 7.37, 8.30, 9.53, 8.55% acids. Their comparison showed that all the market samples were pure soybean oils.