What is a soybean?

Soy is a legume and has been grown for three millennia in Asia and, more recently, has been successfully cultivated around the world. Today, the world’s top producers of soy are the United States, Brazil, Argentina, China and India.

About 85 percent of the world’s soybeans are processed, or crushed, annually into soybean meal and oil. Of the oil fraction, 95 percent is consumed as edible oil. The rest is used for industrial products such as fatty acids, soaps and biodiesel. Soy is one of the few plants that provide a complete protein as it contains all eight amino acids essential for human health.

In order to ensure the integrity of Zoye, Zeeland Food Services, Inc.TM uses only Identity Preserved (IP) soybeans. This means that details about the identity and origin of the crop is tracked from the farm all the way to the finished product. IP soybeans command a premium in the marketplace because of the additional work involved.

Soybean Oil Facts

Soybean oil is among the healthiest of all edible oils and has a very favorable fatty acid profile. Zoye is low in saturated fat, high in polyunsaturated fat and contains monounsaturated fat. Soybean oil is one of the few non-fish sources of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, whichhave various physiological benefits.

Omega-6 fatty acids, found naturally in soybean oil, may also decrease the risk of heart disease, according to a science advisory published by the American Heart Association in January 2009. Containing about 50 percent omega-6 fatty acids, soybean oil is one of the most concentrated sources of this polyunsaturated fat.

Soybean oil is the primary commercial source of alpha-tocopherol, also known as vitamin E. Vitamin E is the body’s primary lipid-soluble antioxidant defense against free radical induced cell damage, which has been linked to a number of cancers, heart disease, cataracts, premature aging, and arthritis.

Soil to Oil

Our “Soil to Oil” process ensures complete control over our soybeans – from planting the seed in the soil to processing the oil. That’s one of the reasons we put such importance on identity-preserved Zoye Low-Sat, Low-Linolenic, Everyday Salad & Cooking, and Everyday Frying & Cooking Oils.

Identity-preserved crops are grown and handled under controlled conditions for specialty use. This means Zoye is pure and will always meet the highest quality standards, and we know with absolute certainty what’s in them: all-natural, 100% pure soybean oil. We even go above and beyond with our oil – every Zoye shipment on every truck is tested to ensure maximum quality.

As consumers continue to get a better understanding of how their food is produced, you can always be sure of this: when a Zoye label says “identity-preserved,” the contents of that bottle are and always have been Zoye – pure soybean oil, made with renewable energy. And with no hydrogenation, low saturated fats, and no trans fat, it’s good for you and our planet. Our Zoye Low-Sat oil, available in retail stores, is also non-genetically modified.

Creating Zoye

1. ZFSelect low-saturated and low-linolenic seeds are planted.

2. The seeds grow.
• In the fields of our contracted growers
• Carefully monitored via GPS process

3. The soybeans are harvested under identity preserved methods.

4. Using renewable energy, the soybeans are processed into food-grade oil by extracting the oil from the soybeans.