Starbucks to end artificial trans fats in Canada

A customer sits in a Starbucks coffee shop in New York, March 14, 2007. Starbucks, the world's largest coffee shop chain, said it will eliminate the use of artificial trans fats in all food and beverages in stores in the continental U.S., Alaska and Canada by the end of 2007.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp. said on Monday it would eliminate artificial trans fats in all food and beverages sold in stores in the continental United States, Alaska and Canada by the end of 2007.

The coffee shop chain had announced in January it was removing artificial trans fats from its U.S. restaurants.

Foods containing naturally occurring trans fats, such as butter, would continue to be sold, but Starbucks is working to remove artificial ingredients like partially hydrogenated oils from pastries and other foods, the company said in a statement.

Trans fats can increase the risk of heart disease and stroke by boosting levels of so-called "bad" cholesterol, or LDL.

Several U.S. restaurants, including Wendy's International Inc. and Yum Brands Inc. have also removed artificial trans fats from their menus, or set a timeline for the change.

Starbucks said it is also working to remove artificial trans fats from products in markets outside North America.

(Additional reporting by Shailesh Kuber in Bangalore)