Healthwise, a large segement of my diet for twenty years was popcorn fried in coconut oil, with a chaser of coca-cola. I have no plaque build-up and the scans to prove it. I've become more and more convinced that a lot of the problems ascribed to oils are in fact problems caused by diets low in magnesium and other minerals. Most people are inundated with information claiming that a lot of calcium is needed, without being told the "rest of the story" that it must be taken in balance with magnesium. Too much calcium and too little magnesium can encourage plaque and a host of other health problems.
Here is a link that just begins to unravel the lies and half truths that promoted the change to canola. Give it a few more years and I suspect there will be a scandal uncovered in how the PIRGs were secretly industry guided and not "public interest" except in a surface sense.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest has stirred up publicity with bad science on more than one occassion. At our theatre during the coconut oil controversy, people began asking and we proudly told them that we popped in a blend of coconut & corn oil (Snack Chief brand, I believe). Of course, many were horrified, but we kept our reputation as having "the best popcorn in Louisville."
Finally Boxoffice magazine published a refutation of the whole canola-oil-is-healthier press release from the CFSIPI. Didn't convince some of our patrons until we pointed to our manager, who had lost forty pounds and not diminished his popcorn intake at all.
We finally just told people that if occassional movie popcorn did their arteries any damage, they were getting way too much fat from other sources.
As for myself, give me coconut oil taste or nothing (hold the buttery topping, which really is bad for you). Canola-oil-popped popcorn tastes like styrofoam packing material.
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Adam Fraser www.pinestheatre.com
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This one time, at Projection Camp, I stuck a xenon bulb....
(Actually I like popcorn popped in canola oil. We had a commercial popcorn popper at Dynamix, and we tried both coconut "oil" and canola oil, and most people preferred canola. It seemed like the popcorn popped more uniformly in canola too).
Brewer's yeast is great! More theaters need to offer it.
Is White popcorn a brand name or a color, because as far as I knew, all popcorn is white, it's just the color of the oil that differs. You won't need a hair dryer if you drain your tube when done popping. This can be done easily by keeping the line straight and the pail or BIB low so the oil runs back down after it pumps (and doesn't sit in a bend), or simply disconnect the line and drain into a cup when all done for the day. As for the initial heating, coconut oil seems to like to go liquid right around 85 degrees I think. Rather than relying solely on a wand, if you have a small room you can keep at 90 or 95 degrees, store your oil in there and it'll be ready to go right when you need it. Regardless of the method, coconut oil is well worth it, fatty or not. What gets me is when people order a large, extra butter popcorn with a large diet coke.
Yes the yellow coloring comes from the oil (if you still want yellow corn with coconut oil, get the red colored coconut oil)
As for the hairdryer, we had issues with how our pump was installed (You can get coconut oil in BIB?) and it had to have bends in it therefore we needed the hairdryer at the start of business a couple of days out of the week. We had a heated pump so we only needed the wand for the new cans. Unfortunately we didn't have a room we could keep at 85-90 so that there was no need for the wand.
Brad - it tastes fishy because it's canola oil. Probably smells like a big ol' fish fry is going on too. The popper you use should tell you how much oil to use, but on our 48 oz. kettle, we use 16 oz. of oil.
Incidentally, the mall right next to our theatre just had a new popcorn machine put in it, and I couldn't be happier. It's fully automated. You put in a dollar and watch as it air pops the corn which then flies through some clear tubes into a tub for you. You can add butter topping and salt if you want. The presentation is pretty cool, but it tastes like absolute dog shit, which just makes our product more desirable.
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"Asleep at the switch? I wasn't asleep, I was drunk!" - Homer Simpson
The correct oil/seed ratio has to do with seed type, popout, burning, and speed. The idea is to maximize the expansion of the corn and keep the cooking time short enough so that the corn doesn't burn. In a 20oz charge of corn, start with 6oz of oil as a beginning point. Once the kettle has been in use for a while, you can fine tune to get a more exact ratio.
After doing a lot of research, I firmly believe all theatres should dump canola. It was foisted upon our industry and the characteristics and smoke point are unsuitable for use in popping corn. Coconut and peanut oils are much more suitable. I've spoken out on this before in other threads.
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Adam Fraser
www.pinestheatre.com
On the health thing. I was working at a drive-in when the whole canola thing hit. Funny thing was, people wanted the popcorn popped in canola, but still wanted their tub drowned in "butter flavored topping"! It's like the old saying about people going to McDonald's and getting a big-mac and a diet coke.
Tony
I should have mentioned we were also using Flavocol (sp?) seasoning -- good stuff.
Relative smoke points (from the same web source - there is a lot of dispute on exact smoke points)
Safflower 265 degrees C
Sunflower 246 degrees C
Soybean 241 degrees C
Canola 238 degrees C
Corn 236 degrees C
Peanut 231 degrees C
Sesame 215 degrees C
Olive 190 degrees C
Lards 183 to 205 degrees C
Coconut wasn't included in the website. Another site gives coconut a smoke point of only 138 degrees C, however, it gives substantially lower rating for other oils as well and the accuracy is questionable. Coconut oil does have a high lauric acid content, which does lower the smoke point compared to other vegetable oils. This same lauric acid is what makes the oil more akin to butter and dairy products. I suspect that some people subliminally recognize and appreciate it more than other people.
I have never had a problem with coconut oil smoking unless A> the thermostat on the popper was inoperative or set way too high, or B> the concessionist didn't know how to make popcorn properly and added the oil before the seed. This statement includes use of Gold Medal, Cretors, and Manley poppers. I'll say flat out to Dave S. that your popper must have been whacked, and based on my own experiences, my wild guess is that it was a Manley. A lot of people like the Manley poppers, but the ones I've used needed repair much more often.
More health coconut info: http://www.coconut-info.com/links.htm
To me, soybean oil is kind of neutral in flavor. I think I've mentioned before that people do have sensitivities to different tastes, so there is lots of room for disagreement. To a person though, I've never known a person who got fishy tasting popcorn to appreciate it.
Pure butter is NOT good on popcorn. Been there, done that. It has a fairly large water content. Spray some water on popcorn and you'll be able to taste and feel how this degrades the corn. Pure butter can be left in the butter warmer for extended periods to seperate the oil, water, and milk solids. Butter oil works well as a topping. I wish I knew a simple way to recover some of the milk solids, which is where some of the butter flavor resides.
I guess the thermostat might have been screwed up, but there was never any trouble with canola oil smoking. Never had fishy-tasting popcorn using canola oil. That sounds like rancid oil or something.
I'm not arguing against coconut oil. It's in widespread use and everyone seems to prefer its taste. I'm only saying that my experience with canola doesn't seem to be all that bad.
It just occurred to me that maybe I should point out we were using "canola popping oil", not pure canola oil like supermarkets sell for home use. After sitting for a while, a layer of heavy solids would form on the bottom of the tub so it had to be stirred up first. I don't think "pure" canola oil separates like that. We got it from Popper's Supply Company in Portland.
A 6 oz. kettle is very, very small. Like what you'd find in a popcorn cart in the park or something. Maybe you were at a very small theatre, but most commercial poppers intended for theatre use are at least 20 oz. Typically, smaller poppers make better corn, and I know some chains that have one small popper (like 8 oz. or something) for each concession station. Smaller kettles don't have to get as hot, and that saves on breakdowns too. I actually run the thermostat on our 48 oz. kettle lower than the manual recommends to avoid the end of the batch getting burned. I seem to have fewer old maids that way too. We use Lou Ana coconut oil and never have a problem with smoking, except for our lack of good exhaust. Fact is, noone goes to a theatre expecting to eat healthy. Use what tastes best, whatever that may be.
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"Asleep at the switch? I wasn't asleep, I was drunk!" - Homer Simpson
The small-town art-house I got my start at uses 'all-natural, non-hydrogenated, no-coloring added, etc. canola oil' and it is popped without salt. After the corn is dumped a light mist of peanut oil is sprayed on top and then plain salt added, sticking to the peanut oil on the kernals. It is by far the best tasting popcorn I've ever had. Oh and they use 'real' real butter from a local farm.
Here's their site... http://www.rosetheatre.com/
The theater I'm at now, uses canola products for popping & topping (Popsit & Topsit). 
yuck yuck yuck! If something possesses me to chomp on some popcorn while at work, I can't put the Topsit 
on it - or I will be sick to my stomach for hours, nor can I eat more than a few handfuls - or I will be sick to my stomach for hours.
When my stomach makes that kind of statement - I pay attention.
Canola is nasty!
Gracia, I think you may have the same sensitivity that I have. I think I've narrowed it down to the erucic acids (Lorenzo's oil) that are still present in small quantities in Canola.
This fellow has it about right. http://www.rogerkyoung.com/oil.html
FWIW, rapeseed oil was involved in a poisoning epidemic in Spain largely because a batch of it that had been denatured with aniline (for industrial use) got into the food supply. Common thought is that the byproducts of the denaturing were a cause of the over 500 deaths, and thousands of illnesses. Rapeseed oil is used as a food oil in India, and was in fact heavily used in Spain prior to the poisonings.
There are many issues with Canola and rapeseed. One of these may be that it is simply a "new" food that some people cannot tolerate. There has been some research that suggests the evolution of humans contained times when those who could not tolerate the changes in diet from fish and meat-eaters to a grain based diet simply died off, leaving only those who could at least partly tolerate the new diet to reproduce. Some people think this is somewhat reflected in the different blood types.
Whatever the cause, some of us have to go out of our way to avoid this oil.
I have recently begun paying strict attention to what is actually in the foods that I consume. More and more I've been shocked at how much unnecessary crap is in so many things.
Almost makes me think that there is either one (very weird) conspiracy going on, else the general population is retarded!
*begin rant mode*
Taking a look at magazines, television, and movies, you see people that are amazingly thin - in some cases unnaturally so. 'Monkey see, monkey do.' Many people try to sttain the physique they have been conditioned to believe that they must have in order to have any worth. What I have obseverd is that one of the few forms of prejudice that is still socially acceptable is prejudice against people that are overweight. And this is continually fueled by the media in many forms. Yet, the average size (for women) is 14 - incidentally, Marilyn Monroe's size, and by current standards, that is considered to be 'overweight'. (Consider the fact that Ashley Judd is about a size 2!)
Now let's consider what we see in grocery stores. Crap, crap, and more crap - unhealthy junk foods galore, prepackaged nastiness that has to be heated up - all in bright eye-catching packaging, with misleading labels with false claims for healtful benefits - but all priced reasonably. Then that which actually is not unhealthy, including organic foods are all priced outrageously.
What message does that send? Eating right is expensive and time consuming, but eating unhealthily is cheaper, and faster ... and detrimental to that 'perfect body' people think that they need to attain.
It probably all comes down to someone wanting to make some cash over other people's agony... After all, if you destroy your health by what you eat - then you'll be up to your ears in medical bills!
What is going on in the world? 
*end rant mode*
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Jan Hackett
Theater Operations Manager
Extreme Screen Dynatheater
NM Museum of Natural History Foundation
I wouldn't want popcorn oil in the air at a museum either, and I don't think I'd be eager to allow dry popping, which adds moisture and some components of the corn to the air.
Gracia, I've had to pay more and more attention to food components as my sensitivities have increased. Your rant is on target. Companies are looking to increase their bottom line and consumers are looking to reduce theirs. Our attitude towards food in the U.S. is lousy.
Anyway, I prefer coconut oil for popping corn.
Steven Gorsky
The overall thrust of the site that I cited was that this oil was developed and heavily promoted by Canadian farmers and processors, and that Canola still has some euricic acid in it (admitted by the canola processors). It is apparent that the site author has strong reservations about that, and has provided guides on where to look in attempting to verify his statements. Many of his statements are obviously speculative, but not any more so than those of the canola producers.
I don't think I would be as strongly against the oil (canola) if it didn't affect me directly. I AM one of those "anecdotal people" that the Washington Post author casually dismisses. Reporters saying that there is no scientific evidence of harm from canola can repeat it until they are blue in the face, but they are talking through their (to be polite) hats. This stuff can literally make me sick, to the point that I can't work for a day or more. Sometimes the effect is greater than other times, and I suspect the euricic acid content and amount of rancidity are factors.
I'm well aware that people like Gracia and myself might be in a minority, but our mere presence proves that this oil is NOT a good thing for all people. From the research that I have done, I am of the further opinion that there are NO extraordinary health benefits to the commonly marketed canola shortening which has been hydrogenated to reduce rancidity and the fishy odor.
The WP author focused on an urban legend story that anyone with a modicum of critical thinking skills could dismiss, then used that story to "prove" guilt by association, and infer that other comments about Canola were equally untrue. Frankly, such reporting is sophomoric lazy journalism unworthy of even a college newspaper, much less the Washington Post. Other compaints about canola are out there, and there is a real concern over the general suitability and even safety of the product, yet the reporter you cite wrote an article on the subject that has less depth than the frosting on a twinkie.
www.snopes2.com is generally considered to do reasonable research. They did a bit on canola, which a quick search of their site will find. (This article jumps to a number of conclusions - for instance rapeseed oil wasn't used in the US before 1974, it is true, but the reasons are probably less because of heart lesions in lab animals and more because of the stink of the rancid oil making it less popular than more easily obtained cottonseed, corn, and other oils.)
Even the organization that pushed the whole canola craze onto the backs of theatres doesn't like the way it is used in theatres. This quote is directly from their own website:
"Up to a quarter of all theaters use "healthier" canola oil. Canola may be lower in saturated fat, but we gagged when we saw how much cholesterol-raising trans fat it had. Why so much?
Because the multiplex banner is wrong. Theaters are popping in partially hydrogenated canola shortening, not canola oil. Oils have no trans. Shortenings -- even liquid ones -- are usually full of it. "
http://www.cspinet.org/nah/popcorn.html
I've ripped their "science" on this subject totally apart before, and I'm not going to repeat myself. Other people are catching on that the center for (cough) science in the public interest is often less than truthful. For another opnion on their tactics, see: http://www.cspinot.com/
I can't think of any good reason for theatres to still be using canola "oil." I also would be willing to bet good money that much of the "heart healthy" canola oil sold in stores not only still contains trace amount of euricic acid, which can cause heart lesions in lab animals, but is hydrogenated as well, increasing the amount of trans-fatty acids that are the current "bad guys" to the cardiovascular crowd. In short,... we've been had.
Those are my opinions, draw your own conclusions after checking my sources and doing your own research.
Steven Gorsky
I was talking with a nurse recently, who said that the wife of a microbiologist co-worker had been ill for months with intestinal problems, until her husband began using his skills to investigate the bacteria in her gut. He found the problem that doctors had missed, presented a doctor with the proof and told him point blank to start the proper treatment. If the woman had not had a microbiologist for a husband, she might still be looking for answers (or dead).
Email me if you want to discuss things in more detail.
From the story:
WINNIPEG - There is confirmation of something canola farmers have been saying for years: that genetically modified canola is popping up where it wasn't planted and where it isn't wanted.
An Agriculture Canada study suggests the problem is in the seeds. More than half of the seed samples tested showed some level of genetically modified presence. The study's authors conclude that means almost every canola field planted with conventional seed will contain some genetically modified plants.
I'd want something that tasted full, nothing with butter imitatiors, just something that gives you your money's worth. Somehow I just can't see spending the same four dollars for a bag of some yellow trash that will appease yuppie health nuts. Okay, so I'm a romantic about it, but your popcorn should be giving customers an authentic experience that they don't get in a bag of microwave popcorn. I saw far fewer bags of smuggled Act II at my old theater that used coconut oil (and had a large bag at $3.50)