A hydrodeoxygenation catalyst comprises a metal catalyst, an acid promoter, and a support. The metal catalyst is selected from platinum, palladium, ruthenium, rhenium rhodium, osmium, iridium, nickel, cobalt, molybdenum, copper, tin, or mixtures thereof. The support is a promoted-zirconium material including texture promoters and acid promoters. The hydrodeoxygenation catalyst may be used for hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of sugar or sugar alcohol in an aqueous solution. In one embodiment the HDO catalyst may be used for HDO of fatty acids such as fatty acid methyl esters (FAME), triglycerols (in plant oil and animal fat), pyrolysis oil, or lignin. The hydrodeoxygenation catalyst for fatty acid process does not require the use of an acid promoter, it is optional