European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 13, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                The love affair with fat by Diane Ouston the associated press you know too much fat is bad for you but there s something about a charcoal broiled Steak with a crispy ribbon of fat around the Edge that a irresistible potato chips French Fries ice Cream butter sauce. Why is fat so hard to avoid Why do food manufacturers Load their products with it because no matter what your  you your nose Mouth and stomach get off on fat food experts say the love affair with fat is so absorbing that even those with the most official of intentions pan end up making excuses for people who relish fatty foods. Recently the consumer lobbying organization. Public voice for food and health policy blamed americans fat intake on the Federal government for requiring such High amounts of fat in foods like butter ice Cream and cheese. A the same Day the journal of the american medical association gave fat lovers support by saying Only 2 percent of us would live Onger if everyone reduced Overall fat consumption to the recommended 30 percent of ones diet. The new England journal of Medicine put the icing on the cake the next Day by saying dieting could be dangerous Lor people who lend to Pul the weight right Back on again. In a society that has More food than it needs to survive the sensual pleasures of eating begin to dominate. And flavor and satiety All Are enhanced by fat. Quot fat holds taste on the Tongue longer Quot said Keith Keogh executive chef at Walt readers action line by Quot to Disney worlds Epcot Center. And smell. Think of what you feel when you smell meat cooking on a charcoal Grill he said. Quot fat has a Rich velvety texture in the Mouth Quot said chef Mial Parker instructor at the California culinary Academy in san Francisco. A Quot fat makes you feel full a said Katherine wite i head of the food and nutrition Ard at the National Academy of sciences. Here is something about fat that we find pleasant and we seek out what is  but it s a pleasure she said that can be satisfied with other foods or smaller quantities of fat. Keogh who manages the team of . Chefs who will compete in the 1992 culinary olympics in Frankfurt Germany said the professional Cooke a greatest Challenge is reducing at while maintaining flavor. Less fat and More herbs vinegars wines and seasonings Are now being used by the . Team which emphasizes Low fat cooking in the International Competition. A most flavor components for All foods Are in the fat Quot said Gary Smith Colorado state University animal sciences professor. He said fat also makes you salivate As you eat creating juiciness associated with tenderness. Smith who does research for the meat Industry said there would be very Little flavor in meat if the fat were removed completely he said it also protects meat from overcooking. If you like meat rare or medium rare you la enjoy the leaner cuts. But if you �>re1er medium to Well done meat you have to have More fat marbling to allow longer cooking without ruining the flavor Smith said. A Quot its the fat from animals and tropical oils a known As saturated fat a that health officials warn against most because they cause increased blood cholesterol Levels which can Lead to heart disease. But professional Cooks said there is no substitute for animal fat when it comes to really crispy frying. It gets the hottest of All the oils Keogh said. Quot cereals that stay Crisp with milk in the bowl the longest have the highest saturated fat Quot said Keogh Dale Huffman professor of meat science at Auburn University said that one of the problems he found in researching ways to Cut the fat from ground beef was the loss of flavor. Huffman is the Developer of the Low fal ground beef being sold at Mcdonald s As the new Mclean Burger. The product uses a seaweed derivative to help retain. Moisture during cooking. He said flavor enhancers Are needed when the fat is removed. He said fat also contains some fatty acids that Are critical to the human diet. But there s Hope. Huffman said people who change their habits to Low fat eating Start disliking the coating of Fata typical Burger leaves in the Mouth. He said that even people who like fat May subconsciously try to reduce its Side effects. Quot i think that a Why we like Ketchup on French Fries Quot said Huffman. Quot it counteracts the Fatt iness. A concern with use of styrofoam products of a i am concerned with the continued use of styrofoam products by our commissaries and Burger bars to package and serve food. The problems related to the use of styrofoam products Are Many and serious. Tremendous concerns and. Dangers exist in the disposal of styrofoam both incinerating it and dumping it in landfills. More importantly chlorofluorocarbons released into the atmosphere through the production storage use and disposal of Stym Forh Are causing the breakdown of Ozone molecules which protect the Earth from most of the suns radiation. These concerns Are in addition to the wild animals who die after eating bits of styrofoam mistaken for food. All the dangers and concerns related to the use of styrofoam have been documented and made Public. Why is it. Then that our commissaries and Burger bars continue to use such a dangerous form of packaging ? Anne Clark Brun sum Netherlands a sgt. Maj. Michel j. Bolduc he cafes Europe a sergeant major replies cafes shares your concerns about the environment. We be added a Bio environmental Engineer to our staff and have begun a comprehensive program to protect and preserve the environment in the future. In the Case of styrofoam single service items like cups we like you Are looking Forward to the Day that Industry can provide a More Quot Earth Friendly Quot alternative until then Well use the containers manufactured by the food Industry for both practical and hygienic reasons i should also note the fully halogenated chlorofluorocarbons rfcs that experts say affect the Ozone Are not m the styrofoam products , in col. Sandra s. Whitt Deputy commander defense commissary Agency european Region also replies since the separate services commissary systems Are preparing to merge on oct. 1, we would like to answer your inquiry on behalf of All the current commissary systems since our practices Are  understand your concern about styrofoam packaging. Styrofoam is used throughout the . Grocery Industry to package fresh meat products since it is thus far the Only material available that is Lea proof. Before styrofoam was available pulp trays were used to package meat. This resulted in a sanitation problem since the pulp was subject to absorbing other materials and transferring it to the Cut surfaces of the meat. Also leakage of the juices from the meat onto other products was unsanitary and unappealing to the customer. Until suitable substitute for styrofoam becomes available we Are compelled to use styrofoam trays for packaging meat. Pulp trays Are available for packaging produce and in most instances should be used instead of styrofoam. When they Are not it is usually because the commissary has depleted its Supply. We plan to remind All our. Commissaries that they should use pulp trays for produce whenever possible. Thank you for writing and voicing your concern about this very important  service should improve whal has happened to our mall system the Price of Stamps has gone up but the delivery service has gotten slower and slower a Normal letter from new Jersey to Germany which used to take five to seven Days now takes 30 to 60 Days Why William h. Goble Goppinger Germany Barbara Lutz postal services analyst . Army postal group Europe replies mail transit times from the Continental United states conus to Europe have been slower than Normal Over the past eight months. Initially the War in Southwest Asia increased mail volume overseas by an enormous amount causing mail to compete for cargo space on the airlines which slowed the mail Down. As troops withdrew from Southwest Asia transit times to Europe improved. The mail is not entirely Back to Normal but our surveys show that letter mail is arriving in nine Days or less about 95 percent of the time. Although this does not meet Usa eur standards transit times Are improving and we expect them to improve even More in the future. Both Usa eur and Safe officials have reported these problems to Dod s military postal service1 Agency which is working with the United states postal service to improve mail transit times to the military in Europe. If we can be of further assistance please Contact us at ets 379-7837/7643 or write to commander . Army postal group Europe. Attn Teupe Page a pad Apo 09186 to write us readers action line is the readers Quot court of last resort Quot striving to answer some of the questions about life overseas in a military environment or questions about policies and guidelines when other avenues for answers Are not readily available. If you have a question and done to know where to turn for the answer v Ite to readers action line co the stars and stripes Apo 09211-4211. All letters must be signed and preference Wilt be Given to those seeking information of general interest to our readers. Page 16 a the stars and stripes tuesday August 13, 1991