Soybeans are processed through a series of steps involving cleaning, cracking, dehulling, conditioning, and flaking to extract oil and meal.
Here's a breakdown of the soybean processing steps:
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Cleaning: Soybeans are initially cleaned to remove foreign materials like dirt, stems, leaves, and other debris. This ensures a higher quality end product.
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Drying: After cleaning, the soybeans are dried to reduce moisture content, which is crucial for efficient processing and preventing spoilage.
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Re-Cleaning: A second cleaning stage follows drying to eliminate any remaining impurities loosened during the drying process.
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Cracking: The cleaned and dried soybeans are then cracked into smaller pieces. This increases the surface area, making it easier to remove the hulls and extract the oil.
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Dehulling: The hulls (outer layers) are separated from the cracked soybeans. Removing the hulls improves the protein content of the soybean meal.
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Conditioning (Heating): The dehulled, cracked soybeans are heated (conditioned) to a specific temperature. This makes the beans more pliable and facilitates oil extraction.
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Flaking: Finally, the heated soybeans are rolled into thin flakes. This process ruptures the oil cells, maximizing the efficiency of the oil extraction process. These flakes are now ready for oil extraction, typically using a solvent like hexane, or mechanical pressing, or a combination of both.
