Modified Fats

Modified fats are lipid ingredients that have been chemically or physically altered from their natural state to change their melting point, stability, texture, or functional properties for use in food manufacturing. Key examples include hydrogenated oils (full and partial), interesterified fats, fractionated fats, mono- and diglycerides, and fat substitutes like olestra. The NOVA food classification system identifies modified fats as among the most definitive markers of ultra-processed foods, as they represent fundamental chemical transformation of food components. The modification of fats has been central to industrial food manufacturing, enabling the creation of margarines, shortenings, and shelf-stable processed food products that maintain consistent texture across a wide range of temperatures.

Modified fats are found in margarine, shortening, commercial baked goods, crackers, cookies, pastries, frozen pizza, microwave popcorn, fried foods, non-dairy creamers, frosting, candy bars, pie crusts, and many shelf-stable snack foods, though formulations have shifted significantly away from partially hydrogenated oils in recent years.

Level (high → low)Level (low → high)Name (A–Z)Name (Z–A)

AllL1L2L3L4

Marie Callenders Razzleberry Pie

8.10.0/10

Sourdough Specials Pretzels

8.17.5/10

Milk Chocolate Flavor Hot Cocoa Mix

8.10.5/10

Lattice Apple Pie, Apple

8.10.5/10

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Vanilla Wafers

Buds Best Cookies

8.10.5/10

Vegetable Bouillon Cubes, Vegetable

Knorr

8.11.0/10

Pumpkin Spice Flavored Hot Cocoa Mix, Pumpkin Spice

Swiss Miss

8.10.5/10

Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate Flavored Hot Cocoa Mix, 22.23 Oz Canister

Swiss Miss

8.11.5/10

Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate Flavored Hot Cocoa Mix, 8 Count Hot Cocoa Mix Packets

Swiss Miss

8.10.5/10

Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate Flavored Hot Cocoa Mix, 45.68 Oz. Canister

Swiss Miss

8.11.5/10

Chocolatey, Sweetened Rice Cereal, Chocolatey, Sweetened

8.11.5/10

Chocolatey, Sweetened Rice Cereal, Chocolatey

8.11.5/10

Kellogg's Cocoa Krispies Cereal 1.1oz

8.11.5/10

Kellogg's Cocoa Krispies Cereal 1.38oz

8.11.5/10

Flour Street Taco Tortillas, Flour

365 Whole Foods Market

8.15.5/10

Skippy, Peanut Butter, Roasted Honey Nut, Creamy

5.57.0/10

Morton, Garlic Sea Salt

5.53.0/10

Steenstra's, Windmill Cookies

5.53.0/10

Kroger, Creamy Peanut Butter, Peanut

5.55.5/10

Rich and Delicious Crunchy Peanut Butter

5.55.5/10

Creamy with Honey Peanut Butter

5.53.5/10

Creamy Peanut Butter Spread, Roasted Peanuts & Honey

5.53.5/10

Honey Roasted Peanut Butter Spread, Honey Roasted

5.54.5/10

Extra Crunchy Peanut Butter

5.56.0/10

Creamy Honey Peanut Butter Spread

5.53.5/10

Bush's Refried Black Beans 16 Oz

5.57.5/10

Gin Gins, Ginger Caramel Candy

5.32.5/10

Gluten-Free Pie Crusts

5.32.5/10

Peanut Butter

Best Yet

5.36.5/10

Creamy Peanut Butter

Giant

5.37.0/10

Seattle Chocolates, Dark Chocolate Truffle Bar, Rainier Cherry

4.04.5/10

Low Glycemic Peanut Butter Creamy

3.50.0/10

Whole Wheat Khari Puffed Pastry

3.50.0/10

Khari Puffed Pastry

3.50.0/10

Super Chunk Peanut Butter

3.50.0/10

Creamy Peanut Butter, Creamy

Always Save

3.55.5/10

Peter Pan Natural Creamy Peanut Butter, 28 Oz

3.00.0/10

Setton Farms, Dried Beet Chips

3.00.0/10

Torn & Glasser, Roasted & Salted Green Beans

3.05.5/10

Roasted & Salted Vegetable Okra Chips

3.08.5/10

Dried Carrot Chips, Dried Carrot

Setton Farms

3.00.0/10

Coconut Candy

Supercoco

3.00.0/10

Flour Tortillas, Flour

La Abuela

3.03.0/10

Setton Farms Green Bean Chips, 3.5 Oz

Setton Farms

3.07.5/10

Spicy with Lime Plantain Chips, Lime

El Sol

3.00.0/10

Hardbite, Drop'n Mad Beets Lightly Salted Beet Chips

2.00.0/10

Turbana, Plantain Chips, Lightly Salted

2.05.0/10

Kiwa, Beetroot Chips

2.06.0/10

Ripe Plantains Maduros

2.00.0/10

Liquid Coconut Oil

2.00.0/10

Cassava Strips Sea Salt, Sea Salt

2.03.5/10

Sea Salt Plantain Strips, Sea Salt

2.04.5/10

Naturally Sweet Plantain Strips, Naturally Sweet

2.03.0/10

Plantain Dippers Chips

2.05.0/10

Sweet Plantain Chips, Sweet

2.05.0/10

Blue Corn Tortilla Strips, Blue Corn

2.07.0/10

Original Tortilla Strips, Original

2.07.0/10

Plantain Chips, Plantain

2.04.5/10

Sea Salt Plantain Multipack, Sea Salt

2.04.0/10

Swad, Coconut Oil

1.03.0/10

Browse all 12,320 products →

Modified Fats can appear in ingredient lists under several names. If you see any of the following, this is the ingredient family you are looking at:

Modified fats provide specific physical properties that natural fats and oils cannot consistently deliver. Hydrogenation converts liquid vegetable oils into solid or semi-solid fats with higher melting points suitable for baking, frying, and spreads. Interesterification rearranges fatty acids on the glycerol backbone to achieve desired melting profiles without creating trans fats. Fractionation separates natural fats into components with different melting points. Mono- and diglycerides serve as emulsifiers derived from fat modification. These technologies allow manufacturers to precisely engineer the texture, mouthfeel, and shelf stability of food products.

Modified fats are produced through various industrial processes applied to vegetable oils and animal fats. Hydrogenation uses hydrogen gas and metal catalysts (typically nickel) at high temperatures and pressures to saturate double bonds in fatty acid chains. Interesterification uses either chemical catalysts (sodium methoxide) or enzymes (lipases) to rearrange fatty acid positions on glycerol molecules. Fractionation uses controlled cooling and filtration to separate fats into solid (stearin) and liquid (olein) fractions. Mono- and diglycerides are produced through glycerolysis — reacting fats with glycerol at high temperatures.

The FDA determined in 2015 that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) — the primary source of artificial trans fats — are no longer Generally Recognized As Safe, effectively removing them from the US food supply. Fully hydrogenated oils do not contain trans fats but are high in saturated fat. Interesterified fats were developed as trans-fat alternatives, and research continues to examine their metabolic characteristics. Trans fat content must be declared on the Nutrition Facts label.

This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice.

The FDA has determined that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) are no longer GRAS, effectively removing artificial trans fats from the US food supply as of 2020. Trans fat content must be declared on the Nutrition Facts label, though products with less than 0.5g per serving may round down to zero. The EU has set a maximum limit of 2g of industrial trans fat per 100g of fat in food products. Fully hydrogenated oils and interesterified fats remain permitted.