Use of sunflower seed in food products

Sunflowers (Helianthus annus L.) is one of the world's leading oilseed crops. Sunflower oil ranks second only to soybean oil in world vegetable oil production. Its high ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids and its good stability characteristics make sunflower oil highly attractive for use as a cooking oil or in salad oils and margarine. Whole sunflower kernels and high protein sunflower meal can be incorporated into human food formulations. Topics of interest in the review will be the development of the sunflower crop in the United States, seed structure and composition, processing of the seed into oil and meal products, and marketing potential. Also, a review will be made of research on confectionery sunflowers and on the use of sunflower oil and meal in food products.