After the McGovern Report, lard and butter, the traditional stable fats (high in saturates) used in baking had been replaced by a solid form of vegetable oil called ‘shortening’. Vegetable oil is liquid at room temperature, and there is only one way to make it solidify: you guessed it, more hydrogenation, meaning more trans-fats in all types of processed foods – cakes, biscuits, crackers, doughnuts, pies and margarine.
