Cold pressing
Cold Pressing Technology
Major investment in high-tech cold-pressing plant
The Kerfoot Group is currently in the process of creating its own state-of-the-art commercial cold-pressing and filtering plant at its Leeming Bar site in North Yorkshire.
This exciting new development will enable the company to produce a range of natural seed oils for the cosmetic, nutritional and food industries.
What is cold-pressing?
The concept of cold-pressing dates back more than 150 years, and is the most efficient and natural method of extracting oils from seeds. Each machine contains two screws, which revolve and then literally squeeze the oil out of the seed at a low temperature. This process creates a by-product known as meal or cake, which is suitable for use in animal feed.
Benefits of the cold-pressing and filtering process include:
- Oils produced in this way have a low peroxide value (PV).
- More of the natural nutrients in the oils, such as essential fatty acids and vitamins, are preserved.
- The natural taste of the oil is preserved.
- In contrast, more modern seed pressing methods involve the use of high temperatures or chemicals and the resulting oil usually has to be refined to ensure that it is of a suitable standard for food and cosmetic uses.
- Many of our seeds will be grown locally on farms in Yorkshire and Cumbria.
- We are looking to secure Soil Association-accreditation for organic cold-pressing.
- The filtering process will extract the waxes, remnants of seed husks and other sediments out of the unfiltered oil.
- The resulting cold-pressed, filtered oil is a superb tasting, clear oil.
