The American consumer products giant Procter & Gamble Co. is currently talking with federal regulators about using its olestra plant to also make a product that could be used for environmental cleanups. Procter & Gamble could get more use out of the plant if it obtains government clearance and decides to go ahead with the project, company official Greg Allgood said on May31. The Cincinnati plant is operating at less than 50 per cent of its originally planned capacity, said Allgood, associate director of Procter & Gamble's Nutrition Science Institute. The project would involve using sucrose esters - fatty acids that are an ingredient in olestra - to make a product suitable for environmental cleanups and other commercial applications. Procter & Gamble is awaiting a response from the American Environmental Protection Agency. The US Food and Drug Administration has permitted use of olestra in snack chips since January 1996. Procter & Gamble spent more than $200 million in 25 years of developing olestra. The projected sales of US$ 1bn were not reached partly because of accusations that olestra causes digestive problems. Sold under the name of Olean, Olestra is used in products including Procter & Gamble's Fat-Free Pringles and Wow! chips made by Frito-Lay. Company's officials want the FDA to change the advisory label on products containing olestra, claiming the label is not justified. Source: Associated Press
