Method to extract coconut oil: ram press

Source UK Department For International Development (DFID)

Keywords Pastoralism, market milk, market research, animal
Coconut cadang cadang, oil cakes, extraction, sesame,
Niger, rapeseed, United Republic of Tanzania
Country of first practice Ghana
ID and publishing year 4588 and 2006
Sustainable Development Goals Decent work and economic growth, and industry,
innovation and infrastructure

Summary
Coconut oil (also known as coconut butter)
is extracted from coconuts and consists of
over 80 percent saturated fat. It is typically
used in cosmetics as well as in baking and
cooking. The ram press was developed in
Tanzania during the 1980s to extract oil
from sunflower seed. The technology was
taken up and flourished in Zimbabwe, Kenya,
Mozambique and several other central and
southern African countries. The press has
been used to expel oil from other seeds
(including sesame, niger and rapeseed)
as well as dried coconut gratings from
the traditional wet process carried out in
Tanzania. The press can process around 4 kg
per hour of dried gratings producing around
2.5 litres of oil.
Description
Coconut oil (also known as coconut butter) is
extracted from coconuts and consists of over
80 percent saturated fat. It is typically used in
cosmetics as well as in baking and cooking.
1. Ram press for coconut oil extraction
The ram press was developed in Tanzania
during the 1980s to extract oil from
sunflower seed. The technology was taken
up and flourished in Zimbabwe, Kenya,
Mozambique and several other central
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and southern African countries. Oilseed is
placed in a hopper which directs the seed
into a press cage fitted with longitudinal
bars. There are gaps between the bars.
A handle is used to provide leverage to a
ram which is forced against the oilseed and
compresses it against an annulus. The lever
is operated repeatedly which increases the
pressure on the seed allowing freed oil to
be expelled through the cage bar gaps. The
residual cake is forced past the annulus. Both
outputs are collected separately. It should
be noted that the ram press does not work
on a batch system as pressing is continuous
and the barrel continuously empties itself.
The press has been used to expel oil from
other seeds (including sesame, niger and
rapeseed) as well as dried coconut gratings
from the traditional wet process carried out
in Tanzania. The press can process around
4 kg per hour of dried gratings producing
around 2.5 litres of oil. The press is currently
being manufactured commercially in Kenya
and is available through the NGO Kickstart
(previously “ApproTec”): Experimental
programmes were
TECA
undertaken by collaborators
in Tanzania, Côte d’Ivoire,
and Ghana to examine the
TECHNOLOGIES
performance of the ram
and PRACTICES
for SMALL
AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCERS
 Post-harvest and Marketing
press on copra, dried coconut gratings and
the residue from the traditional aqueous
process. The press was found to be able
to extract between 4.5 and 5.5 litres of
oil from 10 kg of copra or dried coconut
gratings, whilst from 10 kg of aqueous
processing residue between 3 and 4 litres
could be recovered. Both yields represent
oil extraction efficiencies of over 60 percent.
Throughputs were, in general, higher in
Tanzania than in the other collaborating
countries, reflecting their familiarity with
the operation of the equipment gained from
its extensive use in rural sunflower seed oil
extraction.
Field trials of the ram press using residues
were initiated by all collaborators of
Women’s Groups in rural areas. In Tanzania,
where batch sizes for the aqueous process
are relatively small (10 to 20 coconuts), the
press proved extremely popular, and several
Women’s Groups, other than those initially
selected for the trials, acquired a press and
were trained in its use by the collaborator.
The care taken with drying the residue
before pressing determines whether the oil
is suitable for edible use or can only be used
as a raw material for soap manufacture, and
both options were taken up. In Tanzania,
trials of the ram press showed a mean
throughput of 4.6 kg per hour of dried
residue from the aqueous process producing
an oil extraction efficiency of 70 percent.
A financial appraisal in Tanzania showed
that viable ventures could be based on the
technology.
In contrast, the field trials in Ghana and Côte
d’Ivoire proved short-lived at all the sites
selected, with the Women’s Groups showing
little interest in the press, finding it too
arduous to use and of too low a throughput
in comparison with the quantities of residue
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available. The rural coconut processing
industry in these two countries operates
on a scale much larger than that in
Tanzania, typical batch sizes being 2 000 to
3 000 coconuts. The financial appraisal also
concluded that the Ram Press ventures in
these countries would not be viable at the
throughputs obtained during the field trials.
Table 1 compares the use of the ram process
and two alternative methods for coconut oil
extraction developed by the same team: the
intermediate moisture content method and
aqueous processing method.
2. Health and safety
The researchers, their institutions or this
website cannot be held responsible for
any damage resulting from the use of the
materials or methods described here. The
application or use of treatments, processes
and technologies is the sole responsibility of
the user.
3. DFID disclaimer
This technology is an output from the
Renewable Natural Resources Research
strategy funded by the UK Department for
International Development (DFID), for the
benefit of developing countries. The views
expressed are not necessarily those of DFID.
4. Acknowledgements
The technology was selected and the
record was compiled from the original
project documentation by Natural
Resources International Ltd, with funding
from DFID’s Central Research Department
(Communications). Implementing and
advising on this process were: Karen Wilkin
and Tina Rowland (joint project leaders),
Andy Frost, Vino Graffham, Jody Sunley, Liz
McVeigh, RNRRS programme staff, FAO’s
Research and Technology Development
Service, FAO’s LEAD programme, DFID’s
Table1: Comparison of processing methods to extract coconut oil

Use of
Use of coconut
Raw Equipment coconut Ease of
Method Quality of oil residue from
material required residue from operation
process
process
Fresh Grater Good if care Can be used 10-15 coconuts Oil can be
grated (manual or taken over immediately per batch yiel- obtained
coconut powered) boiling coco- in cooking ding about 60% using only
nut cream of available oil. manual labour
although po-
wered graters
Aqueous
are available.
Widely used
in many coco-
nut producing
countries
globally.
Fresh Grater Excellent if Can be used 35 coconuts per Needs a press
grated (manual or care taken immediately batch yielding to work
coconut powered) over drying in cooking 60% and 70% of efficiently
coconut gra- the available oil. (bridge press
tings or similar).
Intermediate Moisture con-
moisture tent is critical
to the efficient
extraction
of oil. Good
training is
required.
Fresh, Ram press Good from Can be used Around 4 kg Ram press
dried fresh, dried in livestock dried coconut required. Hard
grated gratings. feed. per hour of work requiring
coconut Poor-quality operation. 4.5 rest intervals
or dried from poorly- and 5.5 litres of for operators.
residue dried coconut oil from 10 kg Very good
from either gratings of fresh dried method for
Intermediate
aqueous or produced coconut gratings; obtaining resi-
moisture
intermedia- from aqueous 3-4 litres of oil dual oil left in
te moisture or intermedi- from10 kg of gratings from
methods ate moisture dried aqueous aqueous and
method – but processing resi- intermedia-
can be used due. te- moisture
for soap ma- methods.
king.
Source: FAO 2006

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Central Research Department, Ken Campbell,
Graham Farrell (Plant Clinic), Simon Eden-
Green, Peter Golob, John Esser, Liz Betser
(360˚ Responsibility). Validation domain
reviewed by the Centre de Coopération
Internationale en Recherche Agronomique
pour le Développement (CIRAD), Simon
Eden-Green and Peter Golob. Uploading
by Random X Solutions Ltd. For more
information, please contact Karen Wilkin, NR
International Ltd or Tina Rowland, Random X
Solutions Ltd.
5. Further reading
• Swetman, A. 1998. Improving the
Small‑cale Extraction of Coconut Oil. Final
Technical Report for project co-funded
by DFID Crop Post Harvest Programme,
project R6087, and the Common Fund
for Commodities, project FIGOOF/01.
CFC Report No. 111. Natural Resources
Institute.
• Harris, R. 1997. Final Technical Report on
Subobjective 2.1: Use of the Ram Press.
Common Fund for Commodities Report 84.
Natural Resources Institute.
• Temu, N. 1997. Use of the Ram Press
in the Extraction of Coconut Oil in
Tanzania: A Final Report. Common Fund
for Commodities Report 76. Agricultural
Research Institute, Mikocheni, Tanzania.
• N’Cho, Y.P., Sangare, A. 1997. Final Report
on the Ram Press (sub-objective 2.1)
Common Fund for Commodities Report
88. IDEFOR/DPO Marc Delomre Station,
Coted’Ivoire.
• Donkor, P. 1997. Final Technical Report
on the Ram Press Component (sub-
objective 2.1) in Ghana. Common Fund
for Commodities Report 79. University of
Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
• Mpagalile, J.J. et al., 1997. Coconut Oil
Extraction Using the Ram Press Method-
A Country manual prepared by Mikocheni
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Agricultural Research Institute (MARI)
under a collaborative project with the
Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) and
Natural Resources Institute (NRI)
Note: DFID Project 6087, co-funded with
the Common Fund for Commodities (Project
FIGOOF/01) and the Institute for Research
and Development of Agro-Based Industry
in Bogor, produced 108 reports during
1997 and 1998. Copies may be obtained by
contacting the CFC Website. Postal address:
P.O. Box 74656, 1070BR Amsterdam, The
Netherlands.
5.1 e-Resources
• Punchihewa, P.G. and Rancon, R.N.
Compendium on Post-harvest Operations.
CHAPTER XV COCONUT: Post-harvest
Operations. URL
• Proceedings of the CFC Workshop on
“Improving the Small-Scale Extraction of
Coconut Oil” held in Bali, Indonesia, 8 to
11th September 1997. Published by APCC.
URL
• Kickstart: Oil Processing Technologies.
http://kickstart.org/tech/oilpress
• Contact details for DFID research project
teams. URL
6. Agro-ecological zones
• Tropics, warm
7. Objectives fulfilled by the project.
7.1 Resource use efficiency
Using this technology increased output
weight and improved the efficiency of the
lengthy process of oil extraction production
by a considerable percentage.
TECA
TECHNOLOGIES
and PRACTICES
for SMALL
AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCERS