The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, or IIT Kharagpur, has developed a vegetable oil powder for a healthy heart. The innovation involved altering vegetable oils through preparation of oil blends which are rich in natural antioxidants and well-balanced fatty acids. The product has already been patented and is ready for commercialisation at low costs.
Led by Professor Hari Niwas Mishra from the Department of Agricultural and Food Engineering, the team had Monalisha Pattnaik and Dr Mousumi Ghosh from the Food Chemistry and Technology Laboratory run by Mr Mishra.
The researchers have received several awards for this product including the Gandhian Young Technological Innovation (GYTI) Award 2020. This work, as per an IIT Kharagpur statement, has been recognised for Young Student Invention and best thesis work in the institute.
“The team is working incessantly towards providing low-cost healthy foods to a wider section of the society,” the IIT statement added.
The IIT Kharagpur statement further said: “Oils vary significantly in their fat saturation. The healthiest are those containing mostly polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats which are healthy for the heart. The role of such fats is widely known in reducing low density lipoprotein or harmful blood cholesterol.”
While explaining the need of the innovation, Mr Mishra said: “The novelty of the research team is in its formulation of a nutritionally balanced polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) enriched with antioxidants and producing a synergistic vegetable oil blend.” The professor added: “We have developed a novel process to protect the lipids from oxidation by microencapsulating with appropriate materials.”
Congratulating the researchers, Professor Virendra Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur said: “Even after seven decades nutritious and healthy food are seen as lifestyle products due to affordability and awareness...This product answers this call by making available PUFA and antioxidant-rich vegetable oil for mass-scale consumption by large sections of the population especially in the lower income groups, who are otherwise forced to buy oil with saturated fats.”
