Vegetable Oils

Abstract

Despite growing use of many synthetic organic chemicals, where formerly vegetable oils were preeminent, each year the use of vegetable oils, and to a lesser extent animal oils, increases throughout the world. In Australia the growing of oilseed has considerably expanded since the first extensive plantings in 1946. Prior to this Australia imported its requirements of linseed for crushing and extraction mainly from India and the Argentine. Indian seed in particular was well-known for the fine quality ‘Calcutta’ oil it produced, and Australian production commenced only when India decided to restrict its exports to oil. Thus, with about 30 tonnes of linseed obtained from the New South Wales Department of Agriculture, began the Australian oilseed industry, an industry which before long encompassed the growing of safflowerseed in commercial quantities, and in recent years cottonseed, sunflowerseed, rapeseed and soybeans. Today oilseed production is recognized as an important part of Australia’s primary industry.