Biscuitville, a popular family-owned restaurant chain in North Carolina and Virginia known for its home-style specialties, is among many Bunge customers seeking to reduce trans fats in the foods they serve.
"More and more of our customers were asking about trans fats," recalls Larry Williams, Biscuitville's purchasing director. "We wanted to do the right thing, but we also had to deliver the same great-tasting food they expect from us."
Larry turned to Bunge Oils national account manager Tom Humphreys for help. The challenge was finding a frying oil free of trans fats that could be used to prepare Biscuitville favorites like fried chicken, hash browns and apple turnovers without changing their taste or texture.
"We're constantly working with restaurants and food manufacturers to formulate oil blends that meet their specific needs," says Tom. "We took Biscuitville's requirements to our food scientists to find a solution that would work best."
Biscuitville tried out three Bunge oil formulations in its test kitchens. But the true test came when Biscuitville debuted the new oils to their customers in a handful of outlets.
"Our customers are really loyal," says Chuck Alston, manager of a Biscuitville restaurant in Greensboro, North Carolina. "If we were to make a noticeable change in the recipe of our foods, they would know it right away."
Biscuitville found that a high-oleic, low-linolenic canola oil with zero grams of trans fat and a low level of saturated fat per serving performed the best based on what they heard from their restaurant managers and customers.
"Because Bunge took great care to provide us with the exact product we needed, we felt confident as we made the change," notes Biscuitville marketing director Kellie Hicks. "The response from our customers has been nothing but positive."