Oil is the most expensive food product in the kitchen. The customers buy products cooked in oil, and at the end of the oil life, operators recycle or throw away the used shortening. Filtering plays an important role in getting the most from an operation’s fryer oil.

Here, Christopher Clements, president, FCA Design, Pearland, Texas, provides insight into what to consider when purchasing an oil-filtration system.

• Oil-filtration systems are like water filters: They need to be changed out and cared for properly to work well.
• Filtering oil can increase the longevity of the oil, produce better-tasting food and save money in purchasing oil over the long term.
• When working with multiple fryers, they can be piped into one filtration system at the factory, but only one fryer is filtered at a time.
• Everyone would benefit from oil filtration in any type of operation since you can get twice the life out of the oil, which saves money.
• Operators can choose from different types. There are fryer manufacturers that offer oil-filtration systems and companies that provide mobile units. The latter can be messy and requires a place for storage. Systems that are built into the equipment don’t take up added space. We recommend fryers that contain these systems, but those who use existing fryers have to go with stand-alone systems. These can accommodate any fryer.