Peanut oil production doubles with new US Golden Peanut refinery

The firm said it is due to start supplying customers next month with refined, bleached and deodorized (RBD) peanut oil, which can be used in fried products and baked goods, and as a flavor carrier.

The expansion, which will occur adjacent to the company's existing peanut shelling and oil crushing plant in Dawson, Georgia, is expected to double the production capacity of refined peanut oil in the US.

According to the company, this additional capacity is in tune with the nation's growing demand for peanut oil, as food manufacturers increasingly seek for healthier alternatives to hydrogenated vegetable oils.

This overall shift in demand in the vegetable oil market is driven by a hunt for zero or low trans fat oils. These fats are formed when vegetable oil is partially hydrogenated, a process usually designed to improve the functionality of the oil and extend the shelf life of products. But trans fats have been negatively linked to raising blood cholesterol levels and promoting heart disease.

"The trans fat issue is just blitzing the US market, and is really driving demand for peanut oil is, which is trans fat free. Its health benefits have become one of the main selling points for the product,"​ said Bruce Kotz, vice president of Specialty Products at the Golden Peanut Company.

According to Kotz, other advantages of the oil include its clean flavor, low level of saturated fat, high smoke point and good stability. Refined peanut oil has also been shown to be allergen free, meaning that people with peanut allergies are able to eat products made with the oil.

The Golden Peanut Company, owned by ADM and Alimenta USA and a major supplier of raw peanuts to the US market, also produces peanut flour for use in nutrition bars, confections and baked goods, as well as roasted peanut oil, which is also used as a flavor carrier by flavor firms.

Until now, the firm would produce crude peanut oil, which would then need to be further refined before it could be used by the food industry. With the start up of the new peanut oil refinery, the Golden Peanut Company will be able to keep significant levels of its peanut oil refining in-house.

According to the firm, it has no plans at the current time to further expand the capacity of its peanut oil refinery.

"Our facility has plenty of capacity to absorb any growth that the refined peanut oil market will see in the States,"​ Kotz told FoodNavigator-USA.com.

Current global production of peanut oil is set at 4.93 million metric tons, according to the latest figures from the US Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service (USDA/ERS). This makes up just over 4 percent of global vegetable oil production.

With decreasing prices and increasing production of peanuts, US demand for peanuts has remained strong over the last decade and a half, with ERS estimates placing per capita demand in 2003 at 6.3 pounds. This is lower than the 1989 high of 7 pounds per capita, although per capita consumption has remained relatively stable since the mid 1990s, according to researchers at the University of California's Agricultural Issues Center.