PALMITIC ACID (C16) PRODUCT CASE

Palmitic acid is a fatty acid with a 16-carbon chain. It is the most common saturated fatty acid found naturally in animals, plants and microorganisms.

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ABOUT PALMITIC ACID

Palmitic acid is defined as “a common saturated fatty acid found in fats and waxes including olive oil, palm oil, and body lipids.” PA also goes by a number of other names, including 1-hexyldecanoic acid, hexadecanoate and palmitate.

Where is palmitic acid found? It’s naturally found in animals (including humans) and in some plants.

Because it’s a fatty acid, you’ll find it in fat-containing plant foods including coconut oil, palm and palm kernel, olive and flaxseed oils, as well as animal-derived foods like meat and milk.

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Palimitic Acid In Foods

Palmitic Acid one major component of palm oil (the oil from the fruit of palm trees) and is also found in some other oils too, including soybean oil.  It accounts for an estimated 44 percent of total fats found in palm oil.

Palmitic Acid is present in some animal products and some plants, including coconuts, cocoa and palm trees. Coconut oil, soybean oil and palm oil are often added to processed foods, so you’ll also find it in some packaged/processed foods, including:

  1. Cookies
  2. Biscuits
  3. Cakes
  4. Candies
  5. Peanut butter

Palmitic Acid can also be found in meat, butter, cheese and milk, accounting for about 50 percent to 60 percent of total fats.

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Dairy Farming

Palmitic acid is key in dairy cattle nutrition, especially during lactation. Adding it to a cow’s diet ramps up the milk volume and the fat content of milk, raising both the quantity and commercial value of the milk.

Fat supplements are commonly fed to dairy cow diets as a strategy to increase dietary energy density, increase yields of milk and milk fat, and improve energy balance. Recent research indicates that the fatty acid profile of supplemental fat is a major factor affecting dairy cow performance

Results have shown that palmitic acid fed at 2% of dry-matter diet has the potential to increase yields of milk and milk fat, independent of production level without increasing body condition score or body weight.

 

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Rumen-Protected Fats

Fats are very energy dense, but the problem with adding lots of liquid oils into rations to increase energy density is it can cause a significant reduction in fibre digestibility and a severe depression in milk fat.

The benefit of rumen-protected fat, and why they were developed, was to allow farmers to increase the energy supply and the energy density of the ration, without those negative effects on fibre digestibility – and without those severe negative effects on milk fat that we will see otherwise when we don’t use rumen-protected fats.

When we add liquid oils or high fat ingredients to a dairy ration, that can cause an oil slick type of effect in the rumen, which can really reduce fibre digestibility and cause milk fat depression. The benefit of rumen-protected fats is that they are not soluble in the rumen – they will stay in a solid state and pass into the small intestine, where they then can be digested and absorbed in the small intestine.

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