article · American Journal of Food Science and Technology
This study examined the quality and safety of crude and refined soybean oils produced by two processing factories in Makurdi, Nigeria. Testing revealed clear differences in physical and chemical characteristics between raw and processed oils. Refining increased oil specific gravity whilst decreasing peroxide value, iodine value, and moisture content. Crucially, harmful contaminants found in crude oils were effectively lowered or eliminated through refining. Cadmium, arsenic, and lead were detected solely in unrefined samples, whilst copper and nickel concentrations fell significantly during processing. Additionally, crude soybean oils contained notable levels of total aflatoxins, which were completely undetectable after refining. Chemical analysis of the refined oils identified various volatile compounds and solvent residues, including 2,4-decadienal, cyclohexane, and toluene. Overall, industrial refining plays a vital role in removing dangerous heavy metals and toxins to ensure edible soybean oil safety.
Contaminated cooking oils pose serious health risks to consumers through exposure to poisonous heavy metals and carcinogenic aflatoxins. Demonstrating that commercial refining successfully removes these hazardous substances confirms that unprocessed, crude soybean oils are unsafe for direct consumption. This evidence informs public health advocates, consumers, and regulators about the critical importance of ensuring thorough industrial processing before vegetable oils reach household kitchens.
This research provides applied quality-control data directly relevant to edible oil manufacturers and food safety regulators. Vegetable oil processing factories can use these findings to validate the effectiveness of their refining steps in removing heavy metals and aflatoxins. Furthermore, the detection of specific solvent residues highlights an immediate, tested baseline for processors seeking to monitor, refine, and improve solvent recovery systems to meet regulatory standards.
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The study aimed to investigate the physiochemical properties, heavy metals, total aflatoxins, and solvent residues in soybean oils produced in some parts of the Makurdi metropolis. The oil samples were collected from “Seraph” and “Hule and Sons” vegetable oil factories in Makurdi. Samples include: Seraph crude soybean oil (A1), Seraph Refined soybean oil (A2), Hule and Sons crude soybean oil (B1), and Hule and Sons refined soybean oil (B2). Analysis showed that the physicochemical properties varied between the refined and unrefined samples. Specific gravity increased from 0.807 to 0.923, 0.822 to 0.931 for A1 and A2 and B1 and B2 respectively. The peroxide value reduced from 9.71 to 9.6 (mEq.O2kg-1) after refining. Iodine value and moisture content also reduced with refining. Cadmium, arsenic, and lead were detected only in the crude soybean oil (A1 and B1) copper content reduced from 5.3 to 2.6 mg/kg, and nickel decreased from 0.55 to 0.01 mg/kg upon refining. Crude soybean oil content (A1 and B1) total aflatoxins of 6.05 ppm and 7.10 ppm respectively. No aflatoxin was detected in the refined oil samples. Major chemical compounds and solvent residues in refined soybean oil (A2) composed of 21.10% 2,4–Decadienal, 18.16% n-Hexadecanoic acid, 4.66% Bicyclo [3.1.1] heptane, 4.45% 1,6,10,14–Hexadecatetraen-3-ol, 4.17% p-xylene, 4.22% cyclohexane, 5.05% cyclopentane, 1.69% 9-Eicosyne and 3.88% toluene. While B2 composed mainly of 2,4-decadienal (27.92%), 2-pentene (17.42%), Bicyclo [3.1.1] heptane (2.10%), 9-octadecyne (1.45%), 2-methyl-E-7-octadecane (1.31%), 2-Heptenal (2.17%), Cyclohexane (2.33%) and Hexanal (2.90%). Refining has a significant role in the physicochemical properties of soybean oil. Refining greatly reduces heavy metal content and aflatoxin in crude vegetable oils.
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DOI: 10.54536/ajfst.v4i2.4592
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