Canola Oil Health Claim
Consumers can take canola oil's new health claim to heart; FDA rules canola oil may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
October 6, 2006: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ruled that canola oil is now eligible to bear a qualified health claim on its ability to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease due to its unsaturated fat content. Canola Council of Canada president Barb Isman says the FDA's stamp of approval is proof positive that canola oil's unsaturated fats are really "Good for Every Body"!
"The FDA puts all health claim petitions through rigourous scientific review," Isman says.
Here's what the FDA approved for display on containers of canola oil and eligible products* sold in the U.S.:
Limited and not conclusive scientific evidence suggests that eating about one and a half tablespoons (19 grams) of canola oil daily may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease due to the unsaturated fat content in canola oil. To achieve this possible benefit, canola oil is to replace a similar amount of saturated fat and not increase the total number of calories you eat in a day.
Isman says the Council will be supporting the use of this new marketing tool to promote healthy eating because "it's now possible to point to this FDA approval to show very clearly that all fats are not created equal".
"Canola oil is a good fat. We've said it all along and now the FDA agrees. Canola oil provides a simple and affordable way to improve heart health and that's great news. We're hoping as an industry of course, that the claim will encourage more food product designers and manufacturers to use canola oil rather than less healthy choices."
Canola oil is high in healthy unsaturated fats (93%), free of cholesterol and trans fat, and the lowest in saturated fat (7%) of any common edible oil. In addition, canola oil is multi-functional with a high heat tolerance, neutral taste and light, smooth texture.
Criteria for foods eligible to bear the claim include containing at least 4.75 grams of canola oil per reference amount customarily consumed, no more than one gram of trans fat and low levels of saturated fat and cholesterol.
For more information, please email fyi@canolainfo.org