What a vegetable oil refinery does

10/11/2024

Example: lifecycle for palm

this is what a palm tree bearing palm fruit looks like

this is what the little palm fruit looks like

this is what crude palm oil looks like

this is what refined palm oil looks like

this is a diagram of the refining process, source

Crude palm oil is pretty smelly, has a strong flavor, and has a stark orange color.

Food manufacturers usually want a neutral oil that won't affect the odor/flavor/color of their product.

Bleaching and deodorizing solves this

What does it have to do with your life

Look at the back of the packaging of almost anything you buy at the supermarket.

Does it have some sort of vegetable oil in the ingredient list?

It probably went through a refinery at some point between being extracted from its palm/coconut/sunflower/canola(rapeseed) and the finished food product reaching your mouth

You probably get between 20 to 30 percent of your calories from fats

So that you have an image in your head

this is what a vegetable oil refinery looks like