Here’s an interesting tidbit – Canadian McDonald’s fries are different than American McDonald’s fries. Bet you didn’t know that, eh?
It wasn’t until we did a taste test in the test kitchen at McCain that I was able to actually taste a difference, and to be honest, it was subtle. At least to me. Some of the other moms were able to taste a huge difference. Maybe there’s something wrong with my taste buds?
But, I’ll be honest, it made me super proud to be Canadian. Because Canadians got this one right – OUR fries are wheat free and meat free and dairy free. YES THEY ARE. No allergen alerts here!
From the McDonalds.ca nutrition page:
French Fries: Potatoes, canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, safflower oil, natural flavour (vegetable source), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (maintain colour), citric acid (preservative), dimethylpolysiloxane (antifoaming agent) and cooked in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with THBQ, citric acid and dimethypolysiloxane). Salt.
If you want more info visit http://www.mcdonalds.ca/NutritionCalculator
McDonald’s French fries in the U.S. on the other hand, have an added flavouring that actually contains natural beef flavour, as well as wheat and milk derivatives.
From the McDonalds.com nutrition page:
French Fries: Potatoes, vegetable oil (canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivatives]*, citric acid [preservative]), dextrose, sodium acid
pyrophosphate (maintain color), salt. Prepared in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent.
CONTAINS: WHEAT AND MILK *(Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients).
Hi Julie,
I contacted McDonald’s Canada as I did not know all this information about hydrogenated oils and this is their response verbatim to your question- Why are they (McDonald’s) still using hydrogenated oils?
Their response:
There is a small amount of fully Hydrogenated oil in the par fry oils and the store oil because it plays a functional role in producing finished products with the proper mouth texture and reduces the less desirable oily appearance/feel.
Though not well known, it is actually partially hydrogenated vegetable oils that contain trans fatty acids (as high as 60%). When the process is taken to completion, as with fully hydrogenated oils, the trans fats goes to zero due to the full saturation of the fatty acids.
Health Canada’s Trans Fat voluntary guidelines state that the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, shortenings, or margarines for deep frying, frying, pan-frying, grilling or as a spread is prohibited unless the trans fat content is less than 2% of the total fat content by weight. McDonald’s meets this criteria across the board.
Here is a link to a third-party website that offers additional information to help answer your question. http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/fully_hydro.htm
i’ll snippy clip the quote cuz me trying to scientifically explain anything will leave you wondering what the heck i’m talking about…basically anything hydrogenated is trans fats which are so completely bad for you….
“Hydrogenated oil is made by forcing hydrogen gas into oil at high pressure. Both animal and vegetable fats can be and are hydrogenated. In general, the more solid the oil is, the more hydrogenated it is. Two common examples of hydrogenated oil are Crisco and margarine. In the 1990s, it was realized that these products might have deleterious health effects, a tragic irony since they were originally produced and promoted as being healthier than conventional oils.
The unstable fatty acids in oils are unsaturated fats, which have been determined to be healthier for consumers, acting to reduce cholesterol in some cases. When hydrogenated oil is made, these healthy fats are converted into a new type of fatty acid, known as a trans fat. Trans fats are not at all good for one’s health. In some highly hydrogenated oils like margarine, trans fats can make up almost half of the total fat content.
Trans fatty acids work to increase LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, and they also decrease HDL cholesterol, which is “good” cholesterol. This means that the fats in hydrogenated oil are far more damaging than even saturated fats, which medical professionals have already determined to be harmful. There is also evidence to suggest that trans fatty acids may bioaccumulate in the body, because the digestive system has difficulty figuring out what to do with them. As a result, a diet high in trans fats will result in weight gain.
Consumption of hydrogenated oil has been linked with diabetes, coronary disease, and obesity in a wide number of scientific studies. In the 1990s, many activists began to lobby for clear food labeling, indicating when products contained trans fats. Other activists went further, attempting to ban trans fats because of their detriment to human health. All medical professionals agree that people should limit their consumption of hydrogenated oil to avoid exposure to trans fats, and should eat foods with healthy fats such as nuts, avocados, and olive oil.”
Hi Julie,
What is your concern about using hydrogenated oils?
why are they still using hydrogenated oils?
huh, who knew? fascinating.
Seriously I was chowing down on the American fries before I even knew!? It wasn’t me with the fine fry tastebuds. I could only tell when I tried the Canadian fries and then compared them to the American fries, and then they showed us the colour difference. I DO like the Canadian fries better knowing this as many of my fellow Moms have children with either wheat or dairy allergies or with both.