Adding Value to Oilseed Crops by Producing Food Quality Oils

Adding Value to Oilseed Crops by Producing Food Quality Oils

Summary

Farmers throughout the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions have been informed about oilseed processing into edible oils. Four workshops targeting oilseed production and culinary oil held in Vermont and Pennsylvania engaged 168 farmers seeking information on oilseed production and culinary oils from oilseeds. Edible oil testing protocols developed for testing storage characteristics of small-scale oil processing as compared to commercially available oils will continue being used to find similarities and differences between the products of these processing methods. Investigation continues into small-scale degumming and bleaching techniques and the storage characteristics of oils processed with these methods. Workshops held in 2013 will highlight these methods, as will video and fact sheets produced.

Objectives/Performance Targets

By the end of March 2014, 200 farmers will learn how to safely and profitably produce edible oils, and 20 of these farmers will engage in edible oil production increasing the value of their product $10.00/gallon resulting in a profitable enterprise documented with the oilseed calculator.

Milestones achieved:
1. Six hundred farmers receive inquiry about interest in learning about edible oil production. Achieved 03/2012
Through contact at farm shows, articles in farming newsletters, email contact through current email lists and other means over 4,000 farmers with potential interest in oilseed production were contacted.

2. 300 farmers reply to inquiry about what informational needs are and best way(s) to present information. In progress
A survey posted to the Vermont oilseeds website to collect this information has provided information from 26 respondents. As farmers interested in oil production are identified they are directed to this survey. We need to do a better job of convincing current oilseed producers that this information is useful and necessary.

3. 250 farmers check off and return edible information and delivery methods most useful to them. In progress
This milestone has not been achieved as the number of farmers providing information has not been as high as expected.

4. Printed information materials (fact sheets) received by 250 farmers and read by 220 farmers. In progress.
Draft fact sheets are in the process of being written. Have not yet been through a farmer review process.

5. 100 farmers attend day-long workshop on edible oil production. Achieved 08/2012
Two workshops held in Vermont and two in Pennsylvania worked with a total of 168 interested farmers.

6. 95 farmers respond to survey of workshop attendees with specific questions about their potential edible oil operation. In progress
24 farmers who attended workshops have requested information related to their current or potential edible oil operation.

7. 100 farmers attend day-long workshop on edible oil production with updated information on bleaching and degumming. Not yet applicable
Information on bleaching and degumming still being created.

8. 50 farmers review new information available on YouTube and through Webinars developed by the project and available through extension websites. In progress
Webinars and YouTube type video is slated to be created this winter with editing and final posting due in late summer.

9. 20 farmers purchase equipment to produce or partner with existing operations to press edible oils for sale. In progress
Project personnel in Vermont and Pennsylvania work with interested farmers as requested. We do not know of any new oilseed production equipment purchased as a result of this project to date.

Accomplishments/Milestones

1. Six hundred farmers receive inquiry about interest in learning about edible oil production. Achieved 03/2012
The project contacted farmers through existing farm newsletters, farm shows, email lists and other means to gather names and contact information from those interested in oilseed production. Known contacts were through:
• Workshop at PASA conference,PA. Attendees:32 02/2012
• Short project statement in Pa Sustainable Ag Magazine (PASA): Reached:4500 02/2012
• Short project statement in NY sustainable farming email update. Reached:3200 03/2012
• Short project statement in ME MOFGA email update. Reached:3200 03/2012
• Oilseed and project article in PASA monthly magazine. Reached:4500 09/2012
• Booth/display at PA Ag Progress Days. Reached:800 08/2012
• Vermont – oilseed information delivered at field days. Reached:250 08/2012
These contacts were to all types of farmers, not just those interested in oilseed production. While some audiences were topic specific because of the nature of the meeting, others were general in nature. End result of this marketing is that many have seen information about edible oils and production.

2. 300 farmers reply to inquiry about what informational needs are and best way(s) to present information.
Fewer farmers have expressed interest in producing edible oils than expected. Vermont has a history of contacting and collecting oil producers and so have added new names to their current list of about 200 interested farmers. Pennsylvania has a listing of 44 names in the Mid-Atlantic region as a result of the contacts above. This total of 244 falls short of the 300 sought for informational gathering purposes.

3. 250 farmers check off and return edible oil information delivery methods most useful to them.

Producer and Processor Information Gathered

Two surveys distributed at meeting in VT: one geared towards oilseed growers and one geared towards those who operate presses. Both surveys collected information about current practices, concerns, areas of interest, and the best ways to provide outreach and assistance in the future

14 respondents to Growers survey on acreage, agronomic practices, pest management, and yields.
(25% of respondents grew 1-5 acres of sunflowers, 25% grew 6-10 acres of sunflowers, 1 grower grows 6-10 acres of winter canola, 1 grower produces 11-20 acres of spring canola, 3 respondents grow >25% acres of soybeans)

Preferred method of getting information:
Annual Oilseed Producers meeting – 60.0%
Workshops/field days – 50.0%
Hard copy of fact sheets – 70.0%
Phone calls – 11.1%
Email exchanges – 20.0%
Fact sheets online – 50.0%
Webinars – 0.0%
YouTube videos– 30.0%
Social networking updates – 0.0%

9 respondents to Processors survey on cleaning, storage, processing, and pressing
(77.8% wanted to know more about oil storage life and methods, 66.7% wanted more info about filtering, and 55.6% asked for information about degumming)
Of the respondents to the pressing survey, 71.4% said they were currently extruding oil for culinary purposes & 57.1% for biodiesel.

Preferred method of getting information:
Hard copy of fact sheets – 37.5%
Fact sheets online – 44.4%
Webinar – 12.5%
YouTube videos – 33.3%
Workshops / field days– 77.8%

These respondents preferred fact sheets available online as a second to in person workshops or field days. Webinars fell far down the list, below the use of YouTube for the delivery of video material. These respondents represent only 23 farmers, far from the 300 interested farmers expected for this milestone. Additional inquiries to farmers will be made to strengthen this number of respondents.

4. Printed information materials (fact sheets) received by 250 farmers and read by 220 farmers. In progress.
Fact sheets are in the process of being developed and written. Length will be 2-4 pages on the following subjects:
• Oilseed Press Operation
• Small scale filtering of vegetable oil
• Storage considerations for vegetable oils
• Small-scale processing (degumming & bleaching) of vegetable oils
• Regulations (considerations) affecting small-scale processing of vegetable oils
• Comparison of small-scale press designs
Information for the first 3 of these fact sheets is available through experience of the project partners and the contacts made during the progression of small-scale oilseed processing for fuel use. Small-scale edible oil processing methods are being developed as a part of this project (degumming in VT and bleaching in PA) and will be written as this material is available. Considerations of regulatory agencies etc. will be developed for the two states with parallels drawn for other states. Food safety regulation and agencies will have differences between states as each state oversees its own regulatory program.

Vermont is leading the comparison of small-scale press designs with an ambitious program to produce oil from the same seed in several different oilseed presses throughout VT. This team has finalized a protocol for this data collection and will start testing oilseed machines in early 2013. Small oilseed presses that are available but are not yet operating in Vermont will be tested with the same seed in Pennsylvania.

5. 100 farmers attend day-long workshop on edible oil production. Achieved 08/2012
Vermont incorporated oilseed pressing as a portion of two workshops held during the summer of 2012. This strategy worked well to garner interest from those perhaps attending for other portions of the workshop, and increased the number of future processors for oilseeds. Pennsylvania held a workshop track during the PA Association of Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) meeting in February, 2012. This option enticed those with an already active interest in oilseed processing. A second workshop in PA was specifically targeted at those interested in oilseed processing for edible oil, and drew 22 participants. There are participants identified for a follow-up workshop in 2013 who could not make it to this workshop but will participate in the future. Future oilseed processing workshops will contain new information on the degumming and bleaching information under development.

6. 95 farmers respond to survey of workshop attendees with specific questions about their potential edible oil operation. In progress
As workshops are held in VT and PA surveys are distributed to gain this information. For the workshops held in 2012, 24 respondents requested more information about the topic of edible oil production. As additional workshops are held in 2013 and additional farmers interested in edible oil production are identified, those requesting information will grow. Information about this project will continue to be distributed outside the two project states and within the Mid-Atlantic/New England region. This will draw in questions from interested farmers from the region to add to the numbers contacting from the two project states.

7. 100 farmers attend day-long workshop on edible oil production with updated information on bleaching and degumming. Not yet applicable
Degumming of oils is done commercially to aid in the further processing of the oil. It is not clear if degumming of oil is necessary for oils that will be used for culinary purposes. Degumming is done to remove certain chemical compounds from the oil. Commercially these compounds interfere with further processing that removes all taste and odor from these oils, and allows questionable quality oils to be processed into commercially acceptable oils. Degumming does aid oils that will be processed for biodiesel, removing compounds that reduce the quality of the final biodiesel product.
Bleaching of oil removes colorants found in naturally occurring pressed oils. One of the common colorants in oils is chlorophyll, a compound which also is thought to increase the rate of oxidation within stored oil. This increased oxidation results in oils that turn rancid more quickly. Bleaching also removes other compounds that may resist oxidation.
The only way to know how oils will react overall to degumming or bleaching is to test oils for rates of oxidation. Portions of these tests are being done at Penn State through the Food Science Department and through the University of Vermont Animal Science Department. This degumming and bleaching of small-scale, locally produced oils is not a common occurrence. As a result, these are processes under development. Tests for these processes are common to the commercial industry and have been understood and verified for use on these oils.
Penn State recently adapted several official methods for edible oil analysis in our laboratory; these methods were validated and used to analyze seven (7) oil samples, which included four (4) canola oils produced at Penn State, one (1) canola oil sample produced in Vermont, and two (2) sunflower samples produced in Vermont. These oils were analyzed for color (AOCS method Cc 13c-50), phospholipids (AOCS method Ca 12;55), conjugated dienes (Baily’s method 2.505), tocopherol isomers (?- and ?-isomers) by high performance liquid chromatography (according to published methods), and transition metals by inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (according to published methods). We will use this methodology to determine how various small-scale processes (e.g., bleaching) affect oil composition.

We are currently working on a protocol for assessing the oxidative stability of our oils. We intend to follow both primary (lipid hydroperoxides, conjugated dienes) and secondary (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) as oil samples are subjected to accelerated storage conditions (50 C).

8. 50 farmers review new information available on YouTube and through Webinars developed by the project and available through extension websites. In progress
While developing information for fact sheets video is taken for use in these YouTube and Webinar efforts. Winter of 2013 is set for the development of these efforts. From farmer input it appears that the YouTube videos are more acceptable than the Webinars. This may be because of the universal use of YouTube versus the perception of Webinars as being more time dependent. Any Webinar material developed will be available for later use through cooperative extension resources such as eXtension.

9. 20 farmers purchase equipment to produce or partner with existing operations to press edible oils for sale. In progress.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

As new information on small-scale degumming and bleaching become available during 2013, this will be shared with those interested in taking processing a step beyond merely filtering the oil. Initial testing of storage characteristics of filtered but not further processed oils shows that these oils may be superior to those oils that have been degummed or bleached. If additional testing shows this to be true, then this is a surprising attribute that can be used to the advantage of small-scale processors of edible oils.
Farmers that have been presented with initial information on bleaching of oil have been skeptical of the practicality of this processing step. For small-scale niche marketers this may be fine. Larger marketers attempting to move into marketing realms that include larger opportunities may find that bleaching is a requirement of doing business. Bleaching removes colorants and some flavors from the oil, and allows the oil to be used for a longer time in a deep fat fryer without oil breakdown.

Additional information was made available to farmers through a number of outreach activities including activities from other projects. Often these activities provided direction to this project while providing oilseed information to these farmers.

Outreach Events in Vermont – 2012
University of Vermont Northwest Crops & Soils Program was in attendance and distributing hard copies of our oilseed research reports at the following events:
1/19/2012-1/20/2012: NOFA-NY Research Symposium – 200 attendees
3/15/2012: 2012 Annual Grains Conference – 137 attendees

3/26/12: Annual Oilseed Producer’s Meeting, held in White River Junction, VT.
26 attendees included farmers, biofuel producers, researchers, and service providers
(growers from 3 states, researchers from VT, PA, NY, ME, MA, NH, and Québec).
Growers were able to interact and share results with one another, and everyone in attendance learned more about the newest oilseed research and marketing opportunities.
Outreach materials (2011 & 2010 research reports) as well as a summary of National Sunflower Survey results were distributed at the meeting. This meeting was also attended by Doug Schaufler who presented information on food grade oils and highlighted the SARE project.
7/24/2012: Integrating Oilseeds into Diversified Agriculture field day at Wood’s Market Garden. 24 attendees, 13 of these participants identified themselves as interested farmers. Farm owner Jon Satz talked about how he fits oilseed crops into successful rotations, as well as discussing planting dates, pest management, and weed control of sunflower and displaying his biomass-burning greenhouse heating system. Oilseed research reports and updates, as well as more information about our program and online resources, were distributed.
8/9/2012: Annual UVM Extension Northwest Crops & Soils Field Day at Borderview Research Farm had 256 registered attendees (118 farmers). Participants toured our many research trials and learned about strategies for avoiding insect and bird damage in sunflower, including shifting planting dates and management strategies. We also discussed oilseed pressing and processing as well as biofuel production in an afternoon workshop. Oilseed research reports and updates, as well as more information about our program and online resources, were distributed.
– Surveys were handed out at the field day, and 41.7% of respondents said they grew oilseed crops, with 38.5% of the total saying they’d like to try growing an oilseed crop.
– Raw oil taste-tests of store-bought and farm-grown oils were conducted. Taste test data were compiled and analyzed by Chris Callahan and some of the results were made available on our UVM Ext Oilseeds webpage at (http://www.uvm.edu/extension/cropsoil/oilseeds).

At the Ag Progess Days Oilseeds and Biomass Fuels display in Pennsylvania, the booth included a popcorn popper that was using fresh pressed canola oil and locally produced popcorn to attract attention. An oilseed press in operation showing the production of the oil also was of interest to show participants. A short questionnaire of the show attendees was required to receive a box of popcorn. Sixty-four percent of the 247 respondents indicated they had no idea where vegetable oil came from.

When asked if they would be willing to pay more for locally produced vegetable oils, 74% of the respondents indicated yes. This is an indication that small niche marketers of edible oils may be able to charge a premium for their oils, based on the growing interest in locally produced products.
Overall this project has moved the interest and information available about small-scale processing of edible oils forward. As more interest in shown in the processing of these oils, more information will be developed to meet this interest.

• 2012 Univ of Vermont Oil Tasting Results

Collaborators: