Screw pressing of whole and dehulled flaxseed for organic oil

Flaxseed oil, a rich source of dietary n-3 FA, is commonly obtained by cold pressing whole seed. Furthermore, flaxseed hulls are emerging as a valuable lignan-rich product for functional food use; therefore, the pressing characteristics of dehulled seed need to be understood. Screw press performance was measured for pressing of whole and dehulled flaxseed. When whole Omega flaxseed was pressed through a 6-mm choke, an inverse relationship between seed moisture content (6.1-11.6% range) and oil recovery (70.1-85.7%) was observed. However, peak oil recovery from pressing dehulled Omega flaxseed of 72.0% was found at 10.5% moisture content in the moisture content range of 7.7-11.2%. Although oil recovery from dehulled Omega flaxseed was lower than from whole Omega flaxseed, the weight of oil produced from dehulled Omega flaxseed per unit time was higher. The dependence of capacity on moisture content was less evident with the 6-mm choke than with the 8-mm choke. An inverse relationship between moisture content of whole flaxseed and oil and meal temperature was observed. The oil and meal temperatures from pressing dehulled flaxseed were significantly lower than those from whole flaxseed. Therefore, pressing dehulled flaxseed appears to offer advantages in organic flaxseed oil production.