Rice bran oil is made through an industrial process that extracts oil from the rice bran.
The Rice Bran Oil Extraction Process
Rice bran oil is extracted from the germ and the dark-colored bran layer of the rice grain. This part of the rice is often removed during the milling process. Here's how the oil is typically produced:
Solvent Extraction
The primary method for extracting rice bran oil industrially is by using solvents. This approach typically involves either a hot or cold extraction method.
- Hot Extraction: The rice bran is heated to facilitate the extraction process. The high temperature helps to release more of the oil from the bran.
- Cold Extraction: In the cold extraction method, the bran is processed at lower temperatures. This method aims to preserve more of the oil's beneficial compounds.
Steps in the Extraction:
- Preparation: The rice bran is prepared for extraction, which may involve drying or flaking to increase the surface area.
- Solvent Application: A food-grade solvent, such as hexane, is applied to the rice bran. The solvent dissolves the oil from the bran.
- Extraction: The solvent-oil mixture (miscella) is separated from the remaining solid bran.
- Solvent Removal: The solvent is then removed from the miscella through evaporation and recovered for reuse.
- Refining: The crude oil is refined to remove any impurities and unwanted components, resulting in the final refined rice bran oil product.
Key Features
- Source: Extracted from rice bran (germ and dark-colored bran).
- Production Scale: Industrially produced.
- Extraction Method: Solvent extraction using hot or cold techniques.
- Popularity: Common cooking oil, especially in Asia.
