Cold Pressed Coconut Oil

Cold Pressing is one of the preferred methods of extraction of coconut oil.

The quality and goodness of coconut oil depends much on the method of its extraction. Basically, there are two main methods of extraction of coconut oil. First one is cold pressing of copra (dried coconut kernels) and the second is boiling of fresh coconut milk. Since boiling or heating destroys many nutrients and volatile components, hence coconut oil obtained this way is not considered as good as that obtained by cold pressing, as cold pressing retains much of oil’s goodness. Again, the methods of cold pressing vary and so vary the oil’s fragrance, quality and price. Let’s check what those methods are.

• Machine Pressing: As obvious, this cold pressing is done with the help of an electrically or diesel-engine driven oil mill. Now, since this is done by machine, the oil undergoes some sort of heating (have you ever noticed how things get heated in a mixer-grinder?) and so it is not considered as good as the one obtained by oil mills driven by bullocks or men, despite of the fact the oil suffers lesser wastage when obtained by a power mill. Most of cold pressed oil used in the world is obtained this way.
• Bullock/Manual Pressing: The oil obtained this way is dearer since the production is less, consumes more time and energy and wastage is more. But again, this can justly be called the true Cold Pressed Coconut Oil. It has a better taste and fragrance than the former one, reasons being obvious. The higher price, lower availability and better quality make this cold pressed coconut oil the choice of the high society people (And it is not beyond your reach too. So, you can very well get some and feel proud that you have equaled them!).

The properties and benefits of Cold Pressed Coconut Oil are not different from the ordinary coconut oil available in the market, except for that bit of taste and fragrance when compared to the oil extracted by boiling. So, there is not much to write about. About the availability, but obvious, cold pressed coconut oil is abundantly available in all the zones where coconut oil is produced in abundance. To get the best results from it, just make sure that no artificial or synthetic additives are mixed with it.

This article is contributed by Aparup Mukherjee.

Sources of Information:

• Reports of Coconut Development Board of India,
• Reports of KERAFED.
• Text books of various courses of agriculture.
• Various other reports on internet.

തനി നടന്‍ വെളിച്ചെണ്ണ

How is jeevan Coconut Oil different from other coconut oil?

              we manufactured using cold press process. Sun dried copra is directly fed into Ghani (rotary machine) for crushing. Oil that comes out isn’t subjected to much pressure, temperature and hence retains the Natural Goodness of Coconut. Cold Pressed oil has a milder smell and appears colorless like water while heat pressed oil appears yellowish.

          most of coconut oil manufacture  is mass manufactured using a heat press process. Copra is roasted and cooked to remove moisture and fed into an expeller for crushing at high temperature. Oil extracted through this process has smells sharper, lasts longer due to less moisture and is a more efficient process in terms of percentage of oil recovered from copra.

Cold Press Coconut Oil

Virgin Coconut Oil is many times referred to as Cold Press Coconut Oil. Virgin Coconut Oil is extracted from fresh Coconut. But, here we refer to oil extracted from Copra (dried coconut).

Copra with about 8% moisture is crushed as it is on Rotary Machine (Chuck/Ghana). Oil is filtered through sedimentation of solid particles for 7 days in settling tanks. The process is extremely simple and requires minimum capital investment.

The resulting oil has crystal clear transparent color, smells and tastes like Copra as it is. Many people like this as it is considered to be natural and local made product.

Roasted Coconut Oil

Copra is cut into small pieces and dried using hot air to about 5% moisture level. This copra is heated for about 1 hour on a multi stage steam-jacketed vessel for roasting. A bit of steam is also added to copra for cooking. This opens up the fat cells and helps in easy oil extraction. Oil is then filtered using Pressure Leaf Filter and Filter Press to remove sediments as and when oil is extracted. This process requires more capital investment for a Steam Boiler & Pipeline, Cooker with Agitator and Motor. Also has higher running cost in fuel for steam generation and power.

The resulting oil has a golden yellow color. It has a stronger smell and taste. It has just the same effect as what roasted Ground Nuts give.

During processing, the temperature of oil and oil cake rise up to 100 degrees, while in cold pressed it is only about 60 degrees. In the process the oil loses moisture and reduces the risk of going rancid. Copra gets sterilized as the bacteria and fungus die, which again prolongs shelf life.

At higher temperatures, triglycerides in other oils start breaking into free fatty acids causing rancidity. But Coconut Oil being mostly Saturated Fat and is quite stable. So, roasting does not deteriorate the quality of oil.

Hair Oil manufacturers prefer Roasted Oil for its stronger smell and longer shelf life. It has a 5% premium in the bulk oil market over Cold Pressed variety. But we are selling at the same price to consumers now. It is something new to them here in Dakshina Kannada market and not yet fully accepted. We have been working hard in educating them about this new variety.

Despite so much of difference they are still the same i.e. Coconut Oil. Both of them are made from same quality of copra, they have the same chemical composition, both have the same miraculous health benefits of coconut oil.