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 region learned more about oilseed potentials as this project continued. Workshops this year engaged 222 attendees and presented many of these with the newly developed oilseed factsheets. The seven fact sheets cover various aspects of oilseed pressing and processing. Most are currently available on-line and the others will follow shortly. Initial storage testing showed surprisingly positive results for the storage qualities of raw pressed oils and will be investigated further in 2014. Short how-to videos are planned for 2014 as the project continues.

Objectives/Performance Targets

Original performance target:

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

• Seven fact sheets and an oilseed processing guide have been developed and are in the process of becoming publicly available.

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.

In progress

• Information on bleaching and degumming delivered to 37 farmers at a workshop held in Pennsylvania.

 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 videos are to be created this winter with editing and final posting due in early 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 know of one oilseed press purchased as a result of this work; others continue with equipment purchased prior to this project.

Accomplishments/Milestones

Accomplishments/Milestones

• 1. Six hundred farmers receive inquiry about interest in learning about edible oil production. Achieved 03/2012 Though this milestone was achieved farmers continued to be contacted 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:
  • Bioenergy display at PA Farm Show; Reached: 2300. 01/2013
  • Bioenergy display at PA Ag Progress Days. Reached: 850. 08/2013
  • Portion of York County Extension Crop Day, PA. Reached: 115. 02/2013
  • Oilseed crop workshop, Liverpool, PA. Reached: 37. 08/2013
  • Borderview Farm Energy Crops Field Day, VT. Reached: 237. 08/2013
  • Oilseed workshop at NOFA-VT, VT. Reached: 28. 02/2013
  • Annual oilseed producers meeting, VT. 26/42. 03/2013
• 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 still falls short of the 300 sought for informational gathering purposes.

This thrust will receive renewed effort in 2014. A new survey tool has been developed and will be used with existing email listings and other contacts in the beginning of 2014. We still are short on contacts for this effort.

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

In 2012 we reported results from 23 farmers. As noted above a new initiative will be made in early 2014 to strengthen the results for this milestone.

 4. Printed information materials (fact sheets) received by 250 farmers and read by 220 farmers.

Fact sheets have been developed for 7 topics and have either been edited and are available or are in the editing queue at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences Publications department.  Additionally, the information in these fact sheets has been compiled into a “Small-scale Oilseed Processing Guide” which is in the editing process as well. These fact sheets and guide are uploaded with this report. These should be treated as draft documents.

Fact sheets developed are:

• Oilseed fact sheet: Oilseed Presses
• Oilseed fact sheet: Oil Filtration
• Oilseed fact sheet: Cleaning & Storage
• Oilseed fact sheet: Overview of Small-Scale Oilseed Processing
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Edible Oils
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Regulations
• Oilseed fact sheet: The Regional Picture
• Small-Scale Oilseed Processing Guide – 37 pages

Pdf’s of these materials are being placed on the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences website under the renewable energy materials. This is a good fit considering the oilseed pressing for fuel use, but not a good fit for the edible oils use. There is no good fit at Penn State for this material. A link to these sheets will be made from the Vermont Oilseed website, and this will be the better path to this information.

In early 2014 these sheets will be announced to the email lists, and through other avenues to reach farmers with this information. Comments will be solicited to make changes as needed.

A last fact sheet on a comparison of various small oilseed presses available and in use in the Northeastern US is slated for completion early in 2014. Information for this fact sheet has been gathered in Vermont and Pennsylvania during the summer of 2013. This information will be tabulated and provided in the spring of 2014.

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.

As workshops are held in VT and PA surveys are distributed to gain this information. As additional workshops are held in 2014 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 Mid­Atlantic/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.

An on-farm workshop was held in Liverpool, PA that looked at growing and processing edible oils. This farm grows canola and sunflower oils and currently uses the oil for shop and residential heat and as a fuel blended with diesel fuel. Interest at this farm has grown into producing edible oils for sale. 37 farmers attended this workshop. An additional workshop is planned for March, 2014 in Vermont.

Last year the protocol was developed for looking at edible oils either as pressed or slightly processed to determine what make sense for a small scale producer to do to enhance the marketing of the oils. In the fall of 2013 canola and sunflower oils are being tested according to this protocol, and this information will be available shortly. Following this analysis, there is interest in looking at the storage aspects of vegetable oils stored for sale under the following conditions: color of sales bottle (clear vs. dark), temperature of storage, and perhaps other conditions. Again, sunflower and canola oils will be tested under these conditions to aid the small oil seed processor in deciding how to store or market oils.

8. 50 farmers review new information available on YouTube and through Webinars developed by the project and available through extension websites.

Video was taken during the summer of 2013 during the testing of the various oilseed presses in Vermont. This winter this will be used as a basis for two videos, one on oilseed presses and one on filtration and limited processing of oils. 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.

We know that we are providing information to existing and potential oilseed processors. As the new Modernization of Food Safety Act takes effect, many producers are waiting to see the final outcome of this act before committing to new activities, including oilseed processing. Farmers are not lining up to purchase and start operating new oilseed operations, but we do know of some new oilseed press purchases.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

As new information on small-scale degumming and bleaching become available during 2014, this will be shared with those interested in taking processing a step beyond merely filtering the oil. Outreach activities for 2013:

The biomass/bioenergy display sponsored by the PA Dept. of Agriculture and Penn State showed biomass materials as well as oilseed projects. This show is visited by more than 400,000 visitors each year and is a good opportunity to talk with the general public as well as the agricultural community. Edible oils are a part of the oilseed display and garner a lot of comment as well as interest in how the crops are grown and used. 01/2013

A portion of a cooperative extension winter farm day (York County, PA) included a session covering on-farm produced fuel including vegetable oils. This extended into a discussion & demonstration about edible oil processing and the differences between producing oils for fuels and oils to be sold as edible oils. Approximately 115 farmers attended this event. 02/2013

An oilseed workshop was held at NOFA-VT, explaining oilseed pressing and processing. 28 conference attendees were in this workshop.

02/2013

The University of Vermont held their annual oilseed producers meeting. 42 attendees pre-registered but only 26 actually attended because of a winter storm making traveling rough. Materials were sent to those unable to attend. Presentations by Vermont and Pennsylvania project members showcased initial storage results and results of the oilseed press evaluations.

Three small-scale oilseed presses in Vermont, one in New Hampshire, and two in Pennsylvania were visited and evaluated in March and May of 2013. At each press, video footage and still photography was used to capture the operation of the press, and press operators were interviewed and surveyed on their anecdotal experiences with the press. The same protocol was used for each press, to evaluate the effects of normal operation, then faster and slower press operation (by adjusting the machines’ speed in RPMs). At each press, the protocol was followed for sunflower, canola, and soybeans, each crop from the same source and at approximately the same moisture. Data was collected to calculate throughput, oil mass fraction (net oil yield), and 24-hour capacity for each press(at each speed). This evaluation revealed that running a press more slowly results in higher net oil yield. Most presses in the Northeast are substantially under capacity and, thus, could be run at a lower speed to yield higher oil. The resulting meal will also have lower residual fat content, which should support its adoption as livestock feed. Subsamples of extracted oil and meal were collected for each press, each crop, and each protocol method. Oil samples were shipped to Penn State for analysis of phosphorus and shelf life. Meal samples were shipped to Cumberland Valley Analytical Services in Hagerstown, MD for wet chemistry analysis of feed quality indicators such as crude protein, starch, lignin, ADF, NDF, net energy for lactation, and micronutrients.

Anecdotal and qualitative data will be compiled into a concise report to guide prospective oilseed processors in choosing and operating small-scale oilseed presses. Manufacturers’ specifications and testimonials will be included as applicable. Data on the effects of altering press speed will be included here to guide growers in choosing the most effective operating speed for a given cropand enterprise condition, when using a given press design. In addition, general guidelines or ‘rules of thumb’ will be included, in summary of the research project’s findings. This report will be distributed online and at workshops and conferences in the coming years. 03/2013

Ag Progress Days is Penn State’s agriculture and farm show held each summer in central Pennsylvania. More than 40,000 people attend the farm show, heavily leaning toward those actively engaged in farming. A biomass/bioenergy display here is busy, and once again featured Pennsylvania produced popcorn popped with locally produced oils. 08/2013

No-Till Oilseed crop workshop showcased no-till cropping systems and the oilseed pressing, filtering and processing system. This was held at Byer’s Farm in Liverpool, PA with 37 attendees. Byer’s Farm grows no-till canola and sunflower crops and presses the oil for engine fuel and heating fuel. People have been inquiring about purchasing the oil for edible oil uses so the farm is working in that direction. 08/2013

The University of Vermont Cooperative Extension personnel held their annual Borderview Farm Energy Crops Field Day. Different types of oilseed presses were demonstrated along with filtering and processing methods. Initial copies of the oilseed fact sheets were distributed to all 237 participants. 08/2013

Oilseed fact sheets have been developed to cover various aspects of oilseed pressing and processing. These sheets are attached to this report. It is expected that these fact sheets will be edited somewhat as they are posted to electronic formatting; the content will remain the same. Topics for these fact sheets are:

•  Oilseed fact sheet: Oilseed Presses
• Oilseed fact sheet: Oil Filtration
• Oilseed fact sheet: Cleaning & Storage
• Oilseed fact sheet: Overview of Small-Scale Oilseed Processing
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Edible Oils
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Regulations
• Oilseed fact sheet: The Regional Picture
• Small-Scale Oilseed Processing Guide – 37 pages

• Oilseed fact sheet: Oilseed Presses
• Oilseed fact sheet: Oil Filtration
• Oilseed fact sheet: Overview of Small-Scale Oilseed Processing
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Edible Oils
• Oilseed fact sheet: Processing Regulations
• Oilseed fact sheet: The Regional Picture

Collaborators: