Vegetable oil

We get oil from plants.

It comes from seeds or fruit. Some oil comes from olives. Some comes from soybeans.

People use it to cook food. It can make treats crumbly. It also helps fry food.

Oil can do other jobs. It helps make soap. It can even run engines.

Many lands make this oil. China and the US make a lot.

It is a very useful thing.

Vegetable oil comes from many parts of plants. It can come from seeds or fruit.

Some oils come from seeds. Examples are soybean oil and canola oil. Other oils come from different plant parts. Olive oil and palm oil are good examples. People use these oils in many ways. In the kitchen, oil helps fry food. It can also make pastries crumbly. Some oils like olive oil add flavor to a meal.

Oil is useful for more than food. It helps make soap and perfumes. Some oils even help protect wooden boats. In the past, people used oil for lamps. It was also used as medicine.

Today, oil can even power engines. A man named Rudolf Diesel used peanut oil for his first engine. This was a big step for fuel. Now, many countries make biodiesel. This is a fuel made from plant oils.

Many places grow these plants. China and the US are top producers. In 2018, China made 16.6 million metric tons. The US made 10.9 million metric tons.

Vegetable oil is a big part of our world.

Vegetable oils are fats taken from the seeds or other parts of edible plants.

These oils can be liquid at room temperature. Some come from seeds, like soybean, canola, and grapeseed oils. Others come from different plant parts, such as olive oil or palm oil. People use these oils for many important tasks. They are used for cooking, making medicine, and even lighting lamps. Because they are generally recognized as safe, they are common in our daily lives.

Making these oils involves taking the fat out of the plant. One way is mechanical extraction, which is often called crushing or pressing. People use tools like a screw press or a traditional Indian ghani to squeeze the oil out. This method is common for traditional oils like coconut oil. Another way is chemical extraction using a solvent. This method is faster and produces more oil. Most modern industrial oils, like corn oil, are made this way.

Humans have used plant oils for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence shows that people in Israel were making olive oil by 6000 BC. In ancient Egypt, oils like cedar and cypress were used during mummification. Later, palm oil became a very important item for trade. In the 1800s, British traders used palm oil to help lubricate machines. This helped during the time of the Industrial Revolution. These oils have always been vital to how people live and work.

Today, the world produces huge amounts of vegetable oil. In the 2018–2019 period, production was 57.4 million metric tons. China was a leader, producing 16.6 million metric tons. The United States followed with 10.9 million metric tons. Argentina and Brazil also produced large amounts.

This large scale of farming helps provide oil for food and fuel everywhere.

Vegetable oils connect to many things you see every day. In the kitchen, they help fry food or make pastries crumbly. Some oils, like sesame oil, add special flavors to meals. They are even used to make things like soap, candles, and perfume. Some oils can even power engines. Rudolf Diesel ran his first engine on peanut oil in 1893. This discovery led to the creation of biodiesel, which many vehicles use today.

Vegetable oils, also called vegetable fats, are substances extracted from the seeds or other parts of edible plants. Chemically, these fats are mixtures of triglycerides. While the term often refers to oils that remain liquid at room temperature, they can vary in consistency. Some examples include seed oils like soybean, canola, and grapeseed oil. Other examples include fats from different plant parts, such as olive oil, palm oil, and rice bran oil. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration recognizes these oils as generally recognized as safe (GRAS).

To produce these oils, manufacturers use two primary methods: mechanical extraction and chemical extraction. Mechanical extraction, often called crushing or pressing, is used for traditional oils like coconut or olive oil. This involves physical force using tools like a screw press, a ram press, or a traditional Indian ghani, which is a powered mortar and pestle. Chemical extraction is more common for modern industrial oils like corn or soybean oil. This process uses a solvent, most often petroleum-derived hexane, to pull the oil from the plant material. After extraction, the mixture is heated to about 250 degrees Fahrenheit to evaporate the solvent. Some producers use supercritical carbon dioxide as a non-toxic alternative to chemical solvents.

Vegetable oils are categorized by the plant part they come from. Seed oils are derived from the seeds of plants and include cocoa butter and soybean oil. Other types come from different structures, such as the fruit or the plant itself. For example, olive oil and palm oil are distinct from seed-based oils. Some oils can also undergo a chemical process called hydrogenation. In this process, liquid fats are treated with a metal catalyst, like nickel, in a near-vacuum at high temperatures. This introduces hydrogen and breaks double bonds between carbon atoms. This transformation can create solid fats, such as margarine or vegetable shortening.

Humanity has utilized plant oils for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence shows that olives were being processed into oil in present-day Israel as early as 6000 BC and 4500 BC. In ancient Egypt, plant oils like cedar and cypress were used during the mummification process. During the Industrial Revolution, British traders used palm oil as an industrial lubricant for machinery. By 1870, palm oil was a primary export for several West African countries. In the early 20th century, the science of fats advanced significantly. In 1780, Carl Wilhelm Scheele showed that fats come from glycerol. Later, Michel Eugène Chevreul deduced that these fats are esters of fatty acids and glycerol.

Global production of vegetable oil is massive and growing. Between 2000 and 2020, production increased by 125%, largely due to palm oil. In the 2018–2019 period, world production reached 57.4 million metric tons (MT). China was the leading producer with 16.6 MT, followed by the United States with 10.9 MT. Argentina produced 8.4 MT, and Brazil produced 8.2 MT. The European Union contributed 3.2 MT.

These oils serve many roles in daily life, from culinary to industrial uses. In cooking, oils provide shortening for pastry texture or act as a flavor base. Some oils, like coconut or rice bran oil, have high flash points. This means they can be heated to very high temperatures for frying without catching fire. Industrially, vegetable oils are used to make soaps, perfumes, and candles. They are also used as insulators in the electrical industry because they are biodegradable. Some oils, like castor oil, are used to create Nylon 11. Others, like dammar oil, are used to treat the hulls of wooden boats.

Vegetable oils also play a critical role in modern energy systems. Rudolf Diesel designed his engine to run on vegetable oil to help farmers. On August 10, 1893, his first engine ran on nothing but peanut oil. This event is now celebrated as International Biodiesel Day. Today, biodiesel is produced through a process called transesterification. It is the most common biofuel in Europe, and in France, it is incorporated into 8% of all diesel fuel. Using vegetable oils instead of fossil fuels can result in greenhouse gas savings ranging from 18% to 100%.