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  • What is the production process for vegetable oil?
  • Finally, data on costs of production and economies of scale are provided. The production process for vegetable oils is described, from receiving oilseeds to refining, in this section. Although the discussion concentrates on soybean oil, differences in the production process for the other major oilseeds are noted.
  • What vegetable oils are produced in the United States?
  • Table 5-1 presents the U.S. production of various vegetable oils from 1984 through 1996.127 Production of corn, cottonseed, soybean, and all other vegetable oils grouped together, is graphed in Figure 5-1 for these years as well.128 The volume of soybean oil produced dwarfs that of all other types of vegetable oils. TABLE 5-1.
  • What are the primary inputs to vegetable oil processing?
  • The primary inputs to vegetable oil processing are the specialized inputs, oilseeds and hexane, and the nonspecialized inputs, labor, capital, and energy. In this section, each specialized input is described. Oilseeds. Oilseeds are the primary input in the production of vegetable oils.
  • How much soybean oil was produced in 1996-1997?
  • For the 1996-1997 crop year (October-September), production of soybean oil is estimated to be 15.7 billion pounds, an increase of about 2 percent over the 1995-1996 year.185 Expected prices for various crops influence a farmer’s planting decisions from year to year.
  • How many vegetable oil production plants are there?
  • *According to the Census of Manufactures, the total number of vegetable oil production facilities is much greater than 109. However, it groups both mechanical and solvent extraction plants. The data reported here apply only to solvent extraction plants.
  • Which industry produces the most vegetable oil?
  • Soybean oil processors comprise the largest share of the vegetable oil industry, producing about 75 percent of the domestic supply of vegetable oil. Vegetable oils are used almost entirely for human consumption, although small quantities are used for industrial purposes such as in paints, resins, and animal feeds.