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Dripping
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Dripping
Dripping is an animal fat produced from the fatty tissue from healthy bovine animals in EU approved processing plants. The modern manufacturing method is to extract the liquor by low temperature rendering before refining, bleaching and deodorizing.
The UK's annual usage of dripping is approximately 40,000 tonnes of which 25,000 tonnes is produced in the UK with 15000 tonnes imported from the Western European Countries. A large proportion of dripping goes into fish and chip shops with the remainder going into food manufacturing such as gravy granules, suet puddings, roasting potatoes and bakery shortenings / margarines.
Each factory is operated under strict supervision of Government Veterinary Inspectors to guarantee that every aspect of its operation, from raw material sourcing and reception, through processing to end product quality, meets the complex and stringent requirements of the European Animal By-Products Regulations (1774/2002/EC). Dripping is used for cooking, especially in British cuisine, significantly so in Northern parts of the UK. Dripping is perceived as less healthy than vegetable oils due to its high levels of saturates however, the chemical analysis is very similar to Palm oil and therefore is very stable when used under extreme frying conditions. Dripping is non-hydrogenated and naturally low in trans fatty acids.
Traditionally, fish and chips were fried in beef dripping, and this practice is still prevalent mainly in the old mining areas across the whole of the UK. As most people eat fish and chips no more than once a week, dripping should not present a health issue as long as a balanced diet is followed.
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