In a sign that the movement against trans-fatty acids is growing in both size and influence, snack-food giant Frito-Lay Canada Inc. will announce today that all of its products will be free of trans fats by this summer. The news is the latest in a string of similar announcements from Canadian food companies manufacturing popular products such as Goldfish crackers, Spudz potato snacks and Voortman cookies. What's more, with North American waistlines expanding and consumers increasingly demanding healthier foods, industry insiders forecast more announcements on the matter from the sector's biggest players over the near term. "We have research that says consumers would prefer to have snacks that are trans-fat free," said Marc Guay, Frito-Lay Canada's president. "So, we're taking a stand and hopefully we can lead the industry down that path of offering foods that are free of trans fat . . . We're doing this because it's the right thing to do, it's not a marketing ploy." Trans-fatty acids are manufactured oils described by one Canadian nutritional scientist as a "secret killer." The fats -- absorbed into food made with partially hydrogenated oils -- are found in many snacks, processed foods and fast foods, ranging from microwave popcorn to frozen waffles to McDonald's hamburgers. Trans fats can raise levels of the so-called bad cholesterol, while lowering the good cholesterol in the body. Canadians are reportedly the biggest consumers of trans-fatty acids, ingesting about 10 grams a day on average. Research has shown that eating as little as one gram daily can increase the risk of heart disease by 20 per cent. As of today, Frito-Lay Canada will use corn oil to cook its Tostitos and Doritos brands, Mr. Guay said. Those two brands are among the most-popular chip brands in Canada, with each line racking up annual sales of more than $100-million. Corn oil is a non-hydrogenated oil and does not contain trans-fatty acids. The company already uses corn oil for its Ruffles, Lays, Cheetos and Rold Gold product lines, Mr. Guay said. The transformation, to be completed by July, will bring the company in sync with its U.S. sibling, which has been trans-fat free since last summer. Stephen Joseph, the founder of BanTransFats.com Inc., a San-Francisco-based group that made headlines by suing McDonald's Corp. and Kraft Foods Inc. to get the trans fats out of their foods, expects trans fats eventually to disappear. That, he says, will have an enormous impact on companies' bottom lines. "In the long term, those companies that jump ahead are going to increase their market share compared to those who haven't. That's so obvious. It's amazing to me that people don't see that," he said. "I think there's a lot of foot dragging by not only the food manufacturers but by the government entities who are afraid to go up against the food manufacturers on this one. I think the government should be taking a much stronger lead both in the U.S. and in Canada." Mr. Joseph called Canada a "very important place" for the anti-trans-fat movement and praised a recent move from New Democrat MP Pat Martin, who earlier this month introduced a private member's bill in Parliament that would limit trans fats to no more than 2 per cent of total fats in processed food. Last May, Mr. Joseph's group sued Kraft to ban the marketing and sale of its Oreos to children and to prevent the company from distributing the cookies to children in schools. As a result of the lawsuit, his website reads, Kraft agreed to eliminate partially hydrogenated oil from Oreos. Kraft also agreed to stop all in-school marketing. At the Food and Consumer Product Manufacturers of Canada, an industry group representing more than 150 food and packaged goods companies, executives have been working with health officials and member companies to rid products of the fat. Carolyn O'Brien, its director of scientific and regulatory affairs, said the main catalyst for the moves has been consumer demand. "Certainly from a competitive perspective, we are encouraging all of our members to look at all of their nutritional composition and if at all possible to make the changes . . .," she said. Meanwhile, as many food firms transform their operations, a growing contingent of snack companies is poised to introduce changes in the near future. At Cadbury Schweppes Canada Inc., spokeswoman Luisa Girotto said that crews are in the process of reformulating their products to eliminate trans fats. "Our goal is to remove them wherever possible."
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