‘Best Product’ and ‘Innovative Product’ – EFKO's oil and fat division returned from Prodexpo 2023 with 12 gold medals in two competitions.

EFKO's milk fat substitutes, confectionery fats, cocoa butter equivalent and frying oil won in the ‘Best Product’ category.

Due to business model peculiarities, the average consumer knows little about food ingredients. But only at first glance. One in two sweets on the shelf in Russia contains specialised EFKO fats.

For instance, the Equilad cocoa butter equivalent protects sweets from temperature changes and fat bloom – the premature appearance of a light coating on chocolate. Premium confectionery fats Econut and Econd are perfect for Assorted sweet fillings: the former is for more delicate filling, and the latter is for harder filling, such as praline. Major fast-food chains have been using Oilmiх frying oil since last year, so victory at Prodexpo cemented the success of the company's engineers and managers.

EFKO's crystalliser, last year's new offering, and Umkalakt, a mixture of vegetable oils for baby food, won in the ‘Innovative Product’ category. The former enhances the structure of oleo (special fat) and milk-containing products. It also protects sweets from the migration of fluid oils. Since 2021 Umkalakt has taken over the import substitution of the most critical ingredient responsible for the health benefits of evaporated milk formulas and fermented milk products for babies.

One of the key business events at Prodexpo 2023 was the session titled ‘Efficient Production during a Crisis? Yes!’. EFKO was invited to participate as a two-time winner of the Russian government's Quality Award.

‘Back in the early 2000s the Russian market for specialised fats and oleo was dominated by imports. Imports accounted for 70% of the market, and for the most high-tech products it accounted for 100%,’ said Aleksandr Alekseenko, director of EFKO's oil and fat division for the dairy industry. ‘With extensive experience in classic oilseed processing, EFKO saw this as a reason for serious R&D and the introduction of advanced oil processing technologies. Today 95% of specialised fats in Russia are locally made. We have learnt to produce absolutely all types of oil and fat products in the world, ahead of existing safety standards. We were also the first to learn to produce fats without trans-isomers, and three years ago we ensured our products contained less than 1 mg/kg glycidyl esters. Voluntarily and ahead of schedule, we complied with the new technical regulation – in accordance with the most stringent international standards. The implementation of advanced safety standards, a strong R&D base and the strictest 24/7 technology compliance control have been and continue to be the foundation of the sustainability and efficiency of our division's business model.’