Oilseeds--including sunflower, canola, soybean, flax, and hemp--are crops that may provide avenues for diversification on our Vermont farms. Oil extracted from these crops may be used for on-farm fuel production or culinary uses; the leftover meal may be used as a high protein livestock feed or soil amendment to boost fertility. The goal of our program is to develop best practices for oilseed production under our growing conditions.
Factsheets, Bulletins & Guides
Oilseed Fact Sheet: Oilseed Presses (pdf)- Oilseed Fact Sheet: Oil Filtration (pdf)
- Oilseed Fact Sheet: Overview of Small-Scale Oilseed Processing (pdf)
- Oilseed Fact Sheet: Processing Edible Oils (pdf)
- Oilseed Fact Sheet: Processing Regulations (pdf)
- Oilseed Fact Sheet: The Regional Picture (pdf)
- Oilseed Fact Sheet: Storage and Cleaning (pdf)
- Small-Scale Processing of Locally Produced Edible Oils (pdf)
- Small-Scale Oilseed Presses: An Evaluation of Six Commercially-Available Designs (pdf)
- Small-Scale Oilseed Processing Guide (pdf)
- Sunflower Insects: Scouting and Identification (pdf)
Event Proceedings and Materials
2014 Oilseed Producers Workshop
- Chris Callahan’s presentation on economic viability of oilseed crops (pdf)
- Hannah Harwood and Chris Callahan’s final results of the small-scale press evaluations (pdf)
- Small-scale press evaluation report (pdf)
- Small-scale press design video (YouTube)
- Heather Darby’s presentation on 2013 research updates and uses for oilseed meal (pdf)
- Ryan Elias’s presentation on culinary oil quality (pdf)
The Vermont BioEnergy Initiative, a program of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund, has additional resources on oil crops for on-farm biodiesel and feed, including the following:
Oilseed Cost and Profit Calculator (A downloadable modeling tool)