A survey on operating conditions and quality of commercial frying fats in Hungary.

An extensive survey on commercial frying fats was conducted in Budapest. It was based on sample collection, analysis and questionnaires filled in with each sample. Frying fats and oils were collected from restaurants, fast-food services and public catering facilities. The quality of samples was assessed by determining their polar components. An evaluation of questionnaires containing over 20 questions yielded detailed information on the usage of fats as well as the fryer operators' habits of conducting frying processes and their knowledge on the subject. The survey consisted of two periods. During the first period 252 samples were collected at random. Quality assessment indicated that 53.6% of all samples was of good quality (with concentrations of polar materials below 25%) while the rest were at the discard point or deteriorated. The second part of the survey was aimed at a recheck of the places where fat had been found deteriorated. Second samples were obtained from 53 establishments. The results showed an improvement both in operating conditions and quality of frying fats. Based on the results, the necessity of instructing fryer operators and introducing regulations and routine quality testings of frying fats became obvious.