Characteristics of retail refrigerated and non-refrigerated margarines/ fat spreads sold in Malaysia

Margarines/fat spreads are commonly consumed by Malaysians, however, these products lack documented quality characteristic information. This evaluation was aimed to determine the quality characteristics of retail refrigerated and non-refrigerated margarines/fat spreads sold in Malaysia. This evaluation was done via two approaches. The first approach was compilation and evaluation of information from the label of the product. The details evaluated were country of origin, type of packaging, weight of products, type of oils used, percentage of trans fatty acid (TFA) and type of fortification. The second approach was the analysis of the margarines/fat spreads which covered slip melting point (SMP), fatty acid composition (FAC), solid fat content (SFC) and texture. The labels showed that six out of the nine refrigerated margarines/fat spreads were imported and all non-refrigerated margarines/fat spreads were produced locally. The ingredient list showed that 16 out of 18 margarines/fat spreads from both segments declared the use of palm oil-based fats and most of the products were fortified with vitamins. The analysis showed that the SMP of refrigerated and nonrefrigerated margarines/fat spreads ranged from 30.8°C-36.9°C and 37.1°C-40.2°C, respectively. The TFA level in the refrigerated and non-refrigerated margarines/fat spreads ranged from 0.25%-0.30% (excluding one product from Australia with 4.25%) and from 0.16%-0.43%, respectively. The SFC of refrigerated products at 5°C ranged from 11.6% and 26.4%, while non-refrigerated products at 30°C ranged from 7.7% and 13.7%. The evaluation showed that the several characteristics of the refrigerated and non-refrigerated margarines/fat spreads were substantially different despite their similar function in food applications, which were influenced by the storage temperature as the application temperatures were similar. Periodic and more extensive compilation of quality characteristic information should be carried out to provide the latest details on these products.