Guide To Hot Pressing Temperatures For Oil Extraction From Crops.

The press keeps going. The seeds are clean and new. But the oil flow remains low. Many processors mid-size processors in Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America have complained about this conundrum. After our investigation and analysis, we found that: they have high-quality machines and excellent raw materials, but they ignore one thing – temperature. Hot pressing temperature in oil pressing is what determines how much oil comes out and how much nutrition stays in. Too hot, and delicate compounds like flavor and antioxidants break down. Too little, and valuable oil stays in the seeds. It’s not a guess. Temperature must be chosen by crop and its oil content, the goals of the processing run, and the market’s demand for quality.

What is Hot Pressing in Oil Pressing?

A few months back, I got a message from a client up in the north of Nigeria— he owns a mid-sized mill that presses peanuts and sesame seeds. “The seeds are good,” he said, “but we’re still not getting the oil out like we should.” I’ve heard the same from processors in Vietnam, Ghana, and even deep in rural Bolivia. The machines are not broken. The seeds are not bad. The real problem? Heat— or, rather, Heat— or, rather, the suboptimal roasting temperature of the seed stock.
The pressing process of baking and heating the raw materials before pressing to extract oil from seeds or nuts is called hot pressing. The hot pressing temperature during the oil extraction process is the secret sauce for many struggling mills. It is not enough to just increase the temperature arbitrarily. Different methods should be used to increase it to the target temperature range according to the type of raw materials.

Definition and Mechanism of Hot Pressing.

Heat pressing is another name for it, and this method is now very popular with medium-sized agricultural processing companies. It makes use of heat and pressure to take out oil from seeds or nuts more successfully. Before pressing, they are heated, which makes the cells inside weaker and helps soften the oil in the materials. Consequently, oil is easier to extract and in higher amounts.
We discovered that hot pressing is the best choice for oil processors in regions such as Africa or Southeast Asia when it comes to carrying out convenient processing of peanuts, soybeans, palm kernels and other seeds and nuts. Can help companies increase overall profits by more than 15%.
There is a usual increase of 15–25% in the amount of oil you can get from hot pressing compared to cold pressing. Even though some heat-sensitive nutrients may be slightly affected,the rise in volume, fast services, and extended product shelf-life make deep-frying worthwhile, especially when combining strength with output is crucial. That’s the reason hot pressing is valuable because it lets us gain value as well as oil.

Suitable Applications of Hot Pressing.

So, what crops should you really hot pressing? The honest answer is that it depends on the texture and oil content of the crop. Hard oilseeds and nuts like peanuts (groundnuts), and sesame seeds really benefit from heat before pressing, especially if they have a high oil content.
Here are some common examples:

Peanuts (groundnuts) – common in West Africa and Southeast Asia.
Sesame seeds – one of the main export crops in Ethiopia, Myanmar.
Sunflower seeds – common in Latin America.
Coconut – one of the biggest staple crops in tropical regions.
Palm kernels – one of the main staple crops across equatorial Africa.
Walnuts and almonds – more common these days as trees are planted for oil in parts of South America.

For these crops, we need to understand the temperature at which you should apply the heat to the material. Every material will have a temperature range where the oil will flow better and not affect the quality of the oil. Too little heating will increase the wear of the oil press and reduce the oil yield. Too much heat and you risk the oil turning brown, bitter or losing nutrients.
In summary, understanding the hot pressing temperature is like tuning the engine of your oil operation. Correct operation can help our oil pressing business production become smoother, faster and more profitable.

So now it all clicks into place, doesn’t it? You’re not just heating seeds, you’re unleashing the chemistry within those seeds with intention and control. Whether you’re processing peanuts in Nigeria in the Philippines, understanding the role of heat and pressure is what successful processors do, as opposed to just struggling processors. It’s not magic, it’s science turned into yield.

Classification of Hot Pressing Temperature in Oil Pressing.

The temperature during hot pressing has a decisive influence on the quantity and quality of the oil extracted. In general, there are roughly three levels of hot pressing temperatures with different functional meanings. Low temperature hot pressing in general means the temperature is below 70°C. This level of hot pressing is mainly used for retaining nutritional components such as vitamins and antioxidants. However, the oil yield is relatively low. Different from this, mid temperature hot pressing ranges from 70°C to 130°C, and this temperature level represents a balance of achieving relatively high oil yield while retaining nutrition components as much as possible, and it is widely used for most common oil crops. High temperature hot pressing, above 130°C, represents a process focused on achieving higher oil yield, and some sensitive nutrients will be damaged, which may influence the nutritional value and flavor of the oil.

This temperature classification is not based on academic debate, but a reference accumulated from our hot pressing practice surveys of previous oil mill customers. So for instance when pressing soft likeable oils such as coconut and olive, low temperature pressing is adopted to retain the health benefits, whereas oil rich seeds such as palm fruit and sunflower seed will typically be high temperature presses in order to maximise the oil yield. Fully understanding the hot pressing temperature level can help everyone press according to the needs of the crop.

Temperature Levels and Application Scenarios Comparison Table
Temperature Level	Temperature Range	Application scenarios	Suitable Crops	Characteristics
Low-Temperature	40–70°C	Semi-hot pressing, virgin essential oils	Coconut, Olive	Preserves nutrition, Low oil yield
Mid-Temperature	70°C–130°C	General hot pressing range	Peanut, Sesame, Rapeseed	Take both oil yield and oil quality into account.
High-Temperature	>130°C	Commercial and efficient pressing	Palm Fruit, Sunflower Seed	High oil yield, more nutrient loss

When choosing between high-temperature or medium-low-temperature hot pressing, temperature control plays a large role in how the oil extraction is approached in relation to the market demands. The optimum hot pressing temperature ranges will vary depending on the crop and the markets to which the oil is typically sold. For instance, if the processing is being undertaken for coconut or olive, then lower temperature ranges should be considered, in order to maximise nutrition for the target market. Conversely, if the oilseed is palm fruit or sunflower seed, then higher temperature ranges might be preferred. By understanding the temperature ranges and crop types, processors can choose the right efficiency for them without compromising on oil quality. Understanding these temperature-crop relationships lays the foundation for choosing the recommended temperature ranges and adapting the process accordingly.
Hot pressing temperature isn’t a case of hot or cold, it varies depending on the market and crop. Low temperature heat pressing can be used to preserve delicate nutrients and high temperature pressing can be used to get as much oil out as possible. The right temperature gives the right control to the press, ready for the processor to decide which temperature range is right for which crop. Keep reading to find out which temperatures fit which crops best.

How are hot pressing and cold pressing different?

Hot pressing uses heat before extraction so more oil is obtained, while cold pressing uses no heat to preserve the seeds’ nutrients. If getting the best oil yield matters most, especially for peanut and soybean, hot pressing is often the preferred method. But, a small amount of flavor and heat-sensitive elements in the vitamins might be reduced. When purity and health are your top concerns such as with olive or flaxseed oils, go for cold pressed.

In what ways does moisture play a role in hot pressing?

When machines are hot pressed, how moist the oil crops is can change the extraction efficiency. Around 7–8% moisture works well for most clothes. Steaming occurs excessively on oilseeds that are too wet which then reduces the pressure and the amount of oil you can get from them. If the feed does not have enough oil, the press can get hot, the oil may get burned and both quantity and quality go down. Stable and high-yield production depends on having a consistent moisture control process during hot pressing.