The State of Commercial Cooking Oil

Due to disrupted supply lines from COVID-19 and global conflict, the cost of commercial cooking oil is on the rise. After several tumultuous years, rising oil prices have foodservice operators scrambling to make ends meet. Fortunately, advances in fryer technology make it easier to filter and preserve high-quality oils to help cut costs.

The Current State of Commercial Cooking Oil

According to the FAO Vegetable Oil Price index, 2022’s oil prices reached a record-setting annual high of 251.8 points in March. The skyrocketing cost of oil is due to persistent supply chain issues. But Russia’s war in Ukraine also impacts, as Ukraine supplies over half the world’s sunflower oil.

When major world events occur, consumers can expect an increase in food prices as supply chains are interrupted and suppliers struggle to meet global demands. Yes, all food prices are rising. But the growing cost of commercial cooking oil and the shortage is especially worrying for foodservice operators.

How to combat the high cost of cooking oil without eliminating popular deep-fried dishes? Many restaurateurs are turning towards oil filtration, which prolongs the life of cooking oil. Preserving high-quality commercial cooking oil is the key to cutting rising costs and continuing to serve tasty fried food.

Less Oil is Being Exported

Driving the increased cost of cooking oil is a shortage of palm and sunflower oils affecting the global supply chain. This is due to major cooking oil producers no longer exporting the same quantity of oil as in past years.

For example, Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil supplier, has tightened its DMO ratio. The Domestic Market Obligation ratio stops the exporting of palm oil until a specific percentage is sold domestically. As of December 2022, this DMO has caused palm oil to remain in Indonesia instead of being exported as the peak season of demand approaches.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has also been disastrous for sunflower oil production. Before the war, Ukraine supplied half of the world’s sunflower oil, and Russia produced another quarter. With both countries wrapped up in the conflict, less sunflower oil is created, and even less is exported, driving the cost up globally.

With exports down and a lower quantity of cooking oils reaching the global market, commercial cooking oil costs are set to continue rising until enough is produced to match the demand.

How SSH Smart Features Make It Easier

With cooking oil shortages, high oil prices, and labor shortages, it’s a challenging time to be a foodservice operator. Thankfully, Pitco is here to help!

Pitco’s new SSH fryers with Smart features are a great way to cut costs, prolong the life of high-quality oil, and reduce the need for labor-intensive work. They include features like automatic filtration, automatic oil disposal, automatic oil top-off, and smart oil sensors. Allowing restaurants to focus on serving delicious fried food consumers will love.

Combat rising oil costs with a frying system you can trust! Pitco’s Solstice Supreme Gas Fryers ensure low oil usage for lower operation costs.

Learn more about how to manage your business’s commercial oil better. Get advice from a Pitco fryer expert – click below to get started.