Plant Oils

Plant oils can be broadly classified into two:

• Essential Oils
• Fixed Oils

Essential Oil

They are volatile, and are usually derived from the non-seed parts of the plants. Essential oils have been used for centuries.

They have been used extensively in ancient Rome, Greece, Egypt & the Middle East – as perfumes, flavors, deodorants, antiseptics & pharmaceuticals. As a result of new processing technologies, they can today used for more functions as well.

Carrier Oils

A majority of the fatty oils are derived from the seeds. They have become as important as, or more important than, their essential oil counterparts, as edible oils, as industrial raw materials and feedstock for producing a number of useful products. Fixed oils are obtained from plants that are fatty, dense and non-volatile, such as jojoba and apricot oil. This is in contrast to essential oils which are volatile in nature. Some of the prominent fixed oils are avocado oil, calendula oil, coconut oil etc. The term vegetable oils is normally used interchangeably with the term fixed oils. Fixed oils are derived from seeds, nuts & vegetables. The major oilseeds are soybeans, rapeseed, cottonseed, sunflowerseed, groundnut, palm, copra (dried coconut), sesame, linseed & castorseed, maize oil and coconut oil. Others include peanut, cottonseed, olive oil, hemp, corn, mustard & flaxseed.

Return Home from Plant Oils