Process for Producing a Glyceride Composition

Abstract

A process for the production of a composition comprising 1,3-dioleoyl-2-palmitoyl glyceride (OPO) comprises: providing one or more palm oil stearin fractions comprising tripalmitoyl glyceride and having an iodine value between about 18 and about 40; interesterifying the one or more palm oil stearin fractions to form a randomly interesterified palm oil stearin; subjecting the randomly interesterified palm oil stearin to enzymic transesterification with oleic acid or a non-glyceride ester thereof using an enzyme having selectivity for the 1- and 3-positions of a glyceride; and separating palmitic acid or palmitic non-glyceride esters from the product obtained in (iii) to form a composition comprising OPO glyceride.

1 - 17 . (canceled) 
     
     
         18 . A process for the production of a composition comprising 1,3-dioleoyl-2-palmitoyl glyceride (OPO), wherein the process comprises:
 (i) providing one or more palm oil stearin fractions comprising tripalmitoyl glyceride and having an iodine value between about 18 and about 40;   (ii) interesterifying the one or more palm oil stearin fractions to form a randomly interesterified palm oil stearin;   (iii) subjecting the randomly interesterified palm oil stearin to enzymic transesterification with oleic acid or a non-glyceride ester thereof using an enzyme having selectivity for the 1- and 3-positions of a glyceride;   (iv) separating palmitic acid or palmitic non-glyceride esters from the product obtained in (iii) to form a composition comprising OPO glyceride;
 and wherein step (ii) is carried out enzymatically. 
   
     
     
         19 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the one or more palm oil stearin fractions is or are bleached and deodorised before step (ii). 
     
     
         20 . A process according to  claim 18 , further comprising the step (v) of dry fractionating the product obtained in (iv) to form a fraction comprising an increased amount of OPO. 
     
     
         21 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the enzyme that is used in step (ii) is a lipase. 
     
     
         22 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the one or more palm oil stearins is or are provided by fractionating palm oil or a derivative thereof. 
     
     
         23 . A process according to  claim 22 , wherein fractionating palm oil comprises dry fractionation. 
     
     
         24 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the palm oil stearin has an iodine value between about 18 and about 35. 
     
     
         25 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the palm oil stearin comprises a mixture of at least two palm oil stearins having different iodine values. 
     
     
         26 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the palm oil stearin comprises a mixture of a first palm oil stearin having an iodine value of from about 10 to about 20 and a second palm oil stearin having an iodine value of from about 25 to 50. 
     
     
         27 . A process according to  claim 18 , further comprising the step of blending the composition of (iv) or the fraction of (v) with at least one vegetable oil. 
     
     
         28 . A process according to  claim 27 , wherein the vegetable oil is selected from sunflower oil, high oleic sunflower oil, palm kernel oil, rapeseed oil and soybean oil, and mixtures thereof. 
     
     
         29 . A process according to  claim 18 , further comprising the step of blending the composition of (iv) or the fraction of (v) with a source of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) or eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). 
     
     
         30 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the composition or fraction comprises not more than 45 wt % of palmitic acid, based on total fatty acid content, and wherein at least 53 wt % of the palmitic acid residues are present in the 2-position of the glyceride. 
     
     
         31 . A process according to  claim 30 , wherein at least 55 wt % of the palmitic acid residues are present in the 2-position of the glyceride. 
     
     
         32 . A process according to  claim 18 , wherein the composition or fraction comprises not more than 42 wt % of palmitic acid, based on total fatty acid content, and wherein at least 56 wt % of the palmitic acid residues are present in the 2-position of the glyceride. 
     
     
         33 . A process according to  claim 32 , wherein at least 58 wt % of the palmitic acid residues are present in the 2-position of the glyceride. 
     
     
         34 . A process according to  claim 30 , wherein the tripalmitoylglyceride (PPP) content of the composition or fraction is less than 9% by weight of the composition. 
     
     
         35 . A process according to  claim 19 , further comprising the step (v) of dry fractionating the product obtained in (iv) to form a fraction comprising an increased amount of OPO.