NEWS RELEASE<\/strong><\/p>\n

08 July 2010<\/strong><\/p>\n

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<\/strong>The Chip Group is helping those people involved in cooking chips to take a step closer towards improving the quality of them, with the launch of merged Industry Standards and a new Standard for oil.<\/p>\n

Judith Morley-John a Heart Foundation nutritionist and spokesperson for the Chip Group, said the decision to merge the two Standards originally developed for the foodservice\/hospitality sector and chip shop operators came about following extensive consultation with the industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe resulting single set of voluntary Chip Group Industry Standards are now applicable for the wider foodservice sector,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The Standards cover a range of procedural recommendations for cooking better quality chips so that they have lower fat and salt contents.<\/p>\n

\u201cFurthermore, because of increasing international production and supply of improved foodservice frying oils to the New Zealand market, The Chip Group is now able to promote a new Oil Industry Standard.<\/p>\n

Judith said a survey carried out by The Chip Group in 2007, showed that New Zealand chips were high in saturated fat reflecting widespread use of tallow- and palm-based frying products.<\/p>\n

\u201cHigh saturated fat is one of the reasons that heart disease is such a big health problem in New Zealand.\u00a0 Because kiwis eat about 7 million serves of chips each week, decreasing levels of saturated fat in chips could have a big impact on the New Zealand food supply,\u201d Judith said.<\/p>\n

The Chip Group Industry Standard for oil was developed with the aim of reducing the amount of saturated fat in foodservice chips.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn developing this Standard, consideration was given to the trans fat and linolenic acid in frying oil because of their negative impact on heart disease risk and also oil fry life respectively. The criteria for the Chip Group Industry Standard is saturated fat – maximum 28%, trans fat \u2013 maximum 1% and linolenic acid \u2013 maximum 3%.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a way of making it easier for operators to choose recommended oils, brands of oils that have been tested by independent laboratories and approved by the Chip Group are listed on the Group\u2019s website www.thechipgroup.co.nz<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Judith said factors that are helping to drive the interest in the quality of chips are increased consumer awareness of nutrition and food ingredients and an international trend towards improving the quality of food supply.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost consumers appreciate that a potato starts out virtually fat-free and that it is only how it is cooked and what it is cooked in that has a huge impact on its nutritional status.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chip Group, which comprises the Heart Foundation and key industry suppliers including potato growers, chip, oil and equipment suppliers, has been working with the foodservice sector for a number of years to improve how chips are cooked and served.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Chip Group prides itself on working with all sectors of the industry to deliver better chips hence our slogan: \u2018working together for better chips\u2019.\u00a0 We\u2019ve listened to chip shop operators and chefs, so that we can effectively provide them with the tools and knowledge they want in order to meet market demands.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Industry Standards cover: chip size, portion size, cooking, drainage of chip basket, salt addition, frying medium maintenance, and oil type.\u00a0 Laminated posters detailing the Standards for staff training purposes are available in English and Chinese via The Chip Group website.<\/p>\n

To support the launch of the merged Standards, The Chip Group has revamped its website and made changes to its free online training.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn oil module has been developed, and the salt and portion modules have been updated.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe training is flexible, and quick and easy to complete. \u00a0A certificate which is issued upon completion of each module, can be hung in-store and added to the person\u2019s curriculum vitae.\u00a0 We encourage all operators to go online now as it\u2019s a fast way to improve business efficiencies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Judith said by following the Industry Standards everyone wins.<\/p>\n

\u201cResearch shows that consumers prefer the taste of chips cooked according to the Standards and operators that use them can improve business efficiencies and make savings.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about The Chip Group go to www.thechipgroup.co.nz<\/a><\/p>\n

-ends-<\/strong><\/p>\n

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For further information:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Christine Meads<\/strong><\/p>\n

P: 09 525 006<\/strong>0<\/strong><\/p>\n

M: 027 294 0823<\/strong> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NEWS RELEASE 08 July 2010 The Chip Group is helping those people involved in cooking chips to take a step closer towards improving the quality of them, with the launch of merged Industry Standards and a new Standard for oil. … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3730,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"kt_blocks_editor_width":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"Gemma Carroll","author_link":"https:\/\/thechipgroup.co.nz\/author\/gemma\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":9,"name":"Press Releases","slug":"press-releases","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":9,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":1,"count":28,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":9,"category_count":28,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Press Releases","category_nicename":"press-releases","category_parent":1}],"tag_info":false,"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":9,"label":"Press Releases"}]},"yoast_head":"\n