Cacao Butter and Alternatives Production

Cacao Butter (CB) is a unique vegetable fat product, which is obtained from cocoa beans. CB is solid at room temperatures because of its high proportion of saturated fatty acids such as palmitic and stearic acids. Due to its physicochemical values, CB is used in the production of chocolate; cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, etc. But the high demand on CB, increases ？ts price and consequently it becomes insufficient for manufacturers or consumers. To overcome this drawback, vegetable fats similar to CB are being utilized to supply this demand. The Replacers, substitutes or equivalents of CB are produced from fractioned, hydrogenated or interesterified vegetable oils such as mango butter, Shea fat, Sal fat, tallow fat, illipe fat which are mixed with other oils/ fats. Analogous fats are called Cacao Butter Replacers (CBR), Cacao Butter Equivalent (CBE) and Cacao Butter Substitutes (CBS) which have different physicochemical characteristics (Melting Point, Solid Fat Content, and Triglyceride). This review gives a brief idea about the cocoa butter production and its composition with alternative fats and fats modification techniques