The FSSAI has asked WTO-SPS Committee members for their views, suggestions, and comments on the draft notification related to Cottonseed oil within a period of 60 days, on a prescribed form uploaded on the FSSAI website. The forms must reach FSSAI within a period of 60 days beginning12 April 2016. Once notified in the Official Gazette, these amendments will be called Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Amendment Regulation 2016.
In the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, in regulation dealing with FATS, OILS AND FAT EMULSIONS the FSSAI has proposed changes to the standards in two sub-regulations. The first change has been made to Cottonseed oil (binola ka tel) where all standards will remain the same except the standards for Iodine Value. Previously the iodine value in cottonseed oil was that the Iodine value was to remain from 98 to 112. In the proposed amendment the iodine value has been changed so Iodine Value will now be from 98 to 123. According to regulations, Cottonseed oil means oil extracted from clean, sound delinted and decorticated cotton seeds (genus Gossypium).
The second proposed amendment is to be made in the standards for cottonseed oil blended with physically refined rice bran oil. According to regulations “Blended edible vegetable oil means an admixture of any two edible vegetable oils where the proportion by weight of an edible vegetable oil used in the admixture is not less than 20 percent.”
The new standard proposed is in addition to the already existing regulation for cottonseed oil blended with physically refined rice bran oil where cottonseed oil shall not be “more than 4.0 percent by weight; provided that oryzanol content be minimum of 0.20% (by weight) with rice bran oil at 20% level and with an increment of 0.05% with every 5% rise in rice bran oil content in the blend.”
About Cotton Seed oil
According to American Heart Association, unsaturated vegetable oils like cottonseed oil are “heart healthy” when used in moderation. In fact, cottonseed oil is termed “Heart Oil” as it is one among the most unsaturated edible oils. Cottonseed has a similar structure to other oilseeds such as sunflower seed, and like them, it has an oil-bearing kernel surrounded by a hard outer hull. During processing the oil is extracted from the kernel.
Cottonseed oil (CSO) does not require hydrogenation as some of the other more polyunsaturated oils. Food manufacturers and restaurants that use CSO can prepare healthy Trans fat-free foods. Cottonseed oil is, therefore, used as a salad oil, mayonnaise, salad dressing, and similar products because it has flavor stability. This is why CSO is often used as the standard for measuring flavor and odour qualities of other oils. Cottonseed oil is light and has a non-oily consistency and has a high smoke point that makes it a good oil for stir-fry cooking, as well as for frying. Cottonseed oil is a flavor carrier that brings out the natural flavors of foods. Therefore the oil is now being with fish and seafood and in hot spicy foods as the flavors are enhanced. In Chinese noodles, it is used to stir-fry noodle dishes.
An additional benefit of cottonseed oil is that it has a large number of antioxidants called tocopherols. These antioxidants contribute to its long shelf life. Studies show that these natural antioxidants are retained in high levels even in fried products which help to retain their freshness and create longer shelf life.
Leave a Reply