Canola oil Processing Plant
Canola oil is a commonly used form of cooking oil, derived from the seeds of the canola plant. Canola oil manufacturing plants are found in Canada, Malaysia, Indonesia, and North America. These plants operate year-round. Bright yellow flowers produce beans, which form canola seeds. Farmers harvest these seeds to produce one of the healthiest cooking oils. Canola oil is healthier than olive, sunflower, and soybean oils, containing only 7% saturated fat. It is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, a type of monounsaturated fat that lowers cholesterol in the human body.
When canola seeds arrive at the processing factory, they often carry unwanted contaminants. In the first stage, the seeds undergo a segregation process to collect the right seeds for oil extraction. Large and small seeds are separated, with the small seeds falling through holes in a sieve mesh. A conveyor collects the unwanted weeds, moving them to a storage bin where they are later sold as cattle fodder. The canola seeds then pass through a magnetic field that removes any metal objects.
The seeds are crushed between two steel rollers, creating thin flakes. These flakes are moved by a conveyor to a large rotating screw-shaped shaft enclosed in a slotted cage. The shaft squeezes the flakes under high pressure, extracting about 42% of the oil. The remaining oil, still embedded in the pressed flakes, is then washed with a solvent for 70 minutes to remove any chemical contaminants. The resulting canola cake is processed further, and the remaining oil is separated and stored.
The extracted oil enters the purification phase, where it is washed with sodium hydroxide for 20 minutes. During this wash cycle, the oil is spun rapidly to separate unnecessary substances, which are later sold to soap manufacturers. The canola oil refining process continues with cooling, where the oil is kept at 5 degrees Celsius to filter out natural waxes. A sample is then sent to a laboratory for testing.
The next step is bleaching the oil to correct its color, followed by deodorizing it in a steamed vessel to remove any odor. The refined canola oil is then ready for bottling.
In the packaging phase, plastic bottles or jars are prepared for filling. The bottles are inverted, checked for leaks with hot air, and cleaned with an air blower. They are then lined up under the nozzles of the filling machine, which fills each bottle automatically. The factory’s filling machines can process 22,000 bottles per hour. Labeling machines work at the same speed, applying glue to the back of each label and attaching it to the bottles. An electronic machine ensures the labels are correctly placed.
Groups of 12 bottles are stamped with the oil’s quality, expiry date, and manufacturing date before being sealed with caps and placed in cardboard boxes. After loading into cargo, the packaged oil is sent to the market.
