New Products: Fake Fat Of the Land

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Will the diet-crazed country that embraced artificial sweeteners now accept phony fats? Some of America's biggest food firms are betting heavily on it. The latest entrant is A.E. Staley Manufacturing of Decatur, Ill., which last week served up Stellar, a product derived from corn. At a promotional buffet of Stellar-based margarine and cheese spreads, Staley said the reduced-calorie faux fat will be available early next year to food producers, who can use it to replace from 60% to 100% of the fat in such items as salad dressing, baked goods, meat products, soups, gravies and sauces.

Since Stellar is based on simple starch, it can be marketed without obtaining approval from the Food and Drug Administration. The product is the first serious competitor to Nutrasweet's dairy-derived Simplesse, which simulates high-fat flavor and "mouth-feel" in the company's Simple Pleasures frozen dessert by mimicking the shape of fat particles.

Still waiting for the FDA's approval: Kraft General Foods' Trailblazer for frozen desserts and Procter & Gamble's Olestra for fat-free deep frying.