Derived from a process that infuses oil with hydrogen to solidify it, the hardened oil was used in countless products to fix a variety of flaws that crop up in the design of processed foods, from texture to cohesion to the time they could sit on the grocery store shelf without going stale. Trans fat was added to cookies and crackers, cakes and biscuits, popcorn and doughnuts, breakfast sandwiches, frozen pizza, and fried fast food. “I was filled with anger,” Joseph said. “I remember going to Safeway, near where I lived, and looking for anything that didn’t have trans fats.”
