Originally, margarine was made from oil discharge from solidified fat. After World War II, hydrogenated vegetable oils were adopted as a cheaper source of margarine. Currently, most margarine is made out of partially hydrogenated soybean oil.
Vegetable oils have no natural vitamin A, so margarine is required by law to be “fortified” with at least 9,000 U.S.P. units of vitamin A. Actually about 99% of the margarine made today contains 15,000 units or more.
In addition, whey, from cheese making, is also used with salt to flavour the margarine. By law, margarine must contain 8% fat and no more than 16% water, Vitamins A and D must be added. Margarine is used for cakes and pastries.
What is margarine made of?