How Nigeria can turn vegetable oils into gold

Nigeria has more than 10 non-edible oils that can be turned into money-making ventures for the country. Among these are jathropha, rubber seed oil, canarium schweinfurthii oil, khaya ivorensis, cucumeropsis edulis, citrus sinensis among others. This is aside from a number of the country’s numerous vegetable oils that have the properties required for lubrication.  Among […]

Nigeria has more than 10 non-edible oils that can be turned into money-making ventures for the country.

Among these are jathropha, rubber seed oil, canarium schweinfurthii oil, khaya ivorensis, cucumeropsis edulis, citrus sinensis among others.

This is aside from a number of the country’s numerous vegetable oils that have the properties required for lubrication.  Among these are high index viscosity, low volatility and good lubricity.

Experts believe all these produce non-edible oils that can be characterised and developed for lubricating grease production.

In the past, mineral oils are normally used in grease production, but now, research is ongoing on the utilisation of non-edible vegetable oils, which are renewable, less toxic and possess good lubricity characteristics to serve as alternatives for mineral oil based lubricants.

Meanwhile, the University of Agriculture, Markudi, in collaboration with relevant research institutes, has worked on canarium schweinfurthii and rubber seed oil as an alternative source for lubricant production.

The seeds, according to the research report, thrive well in Bauchi, Southern Kaduna, Niger, Oyo and Plateau states.  The tree is a major source of elemi, an oleoresin that is used in food, medicinal and a range of other industrial applications.

Mr Ahmed Umar, an agriculturist, said another important non-food oil seed, which the nation’s attention should be shifted to, is hevea brasiliensis, which is commonly referred to as natural rubber.

Rubber plant seeds are sources of rubber seed oil.  Although poisonous, the seeds can be eaten after processing. Boiling removes the poison and releases the oil that can be used for illumination.

The Raw Materials Research Council estimates rubber seed production from 200,000 ha of rubber plantations in Nigeria at about 20,000 tonnes per annum.  Thus there is adequate raw material for rubber seed oil production.

The Council said it was in collaboration with the University of Benin on a project to develop biodegradable grease/lubricants from black-date and rubber seed oils, with the aim of building capacity in the auto industry and to eradicate or reduce the environmental problem occasioned from the use of mineral oil as base oil for lubricating grease production.

With this, rubber plantation owners will now have more market for their produce with an increased income.

Other benefits include expansion in economic activities within the country, income generation from wastes, job creation and employment generation.

“If investors buy into this project and start the production of the oils locally, we shall not only save foreign exchange, we can export to other countries, thereby, generating foreign exchange,’’ a research report by the Council reads in part.