The Canola oil shortage
Posted by Jennifer Amrhein on
An article by Dan Strachan, Sales & Marketing Manager at Hostservice Commercial
There's nothing quite like a piece of crispy battered fish along with golden crunchy chips. Deep fried to perfection, most likely in a vat of Canola Oil, it's a takeaway many of us love! It's interesting to note, that over the second half of 2020, the price of Canola Oil has risen dramatically and seems set to continue to do so. Weather patterns including droughts in Europe and North America, along with floods in China have impacted crops, creating the worldwide shortage. Late rain in parts of Eastern Australia threaten to impact the Australian Canola crop.
While it seems like shortage and market volatility will be here for a while longer, there's ways to minimize the impact of this for those who regularly fry food.
One way to help mitigate this cost increase, is to make your oil last longer. Applying oil management techniques can slow the breakdown of your oil, allowing you to use it for longer without compromising the quality of your oil. Of course, less frequent oil changes is a cost-saving.
How can I increase the life of my oil?
The most effective way to lengthen the life of your oil is by using a fine filtration system. We recommend the Vito filtration system which removes the microparticles as well as the large crumb. This is crucial to preventing the breakdown of oil.
Vito is quick, easy and safe. It is used in-fryer, this means no oil on the floors, no waiting for oil to cool to a safe temperature, and best of all, minimum mess. Our favorite systems are used in hot oil, they take a maximum of 5 minutes to filter (just switch on and leave it to do its work) and best of all? Once it’s done, you can put the messy bits through the dishwasher. Yes. Really. It’s that easy.
In some cases, the Vito can double the life of frying oil.
And it’s not just the filtering. Did you know most cooks are under the false impression that dark oil = poor quality = oil ready to dump? This might even include you, but how do you know better? You use an oil tester. Oil testers like the FT440 or VITO oiltester measure the TPM percentage in your oil to indicate the best time to change, and ensures your oil is working at the optimum levels and you are consistently serving quality fried food.