5.1.2 Hand-operated processing of oil seeds

Local manufacturing

"Presse Garango", Senegal and Burkina Faso

The "Presse Garango" is a press mainly in use for processing groundnuts. These presses are manufactured by local blacksmiths from locally available materials.

They can be found on markets in Senegal and Burkina Faso. Its construction is, in principle, the same as the press disseminated by ENDA in the Casamance for processing oil palm fruit, which is also based on the Garango" press. Its use for processing groundnuts compared with the traditional way of preparing oil and "kuli-kuli" is described by Corbett. As "kuli-kuli" fetches a good price and the sale of the press cake from the press is uncertain, the traditional process is still financially more attractive.

Project GTZ/GATE, Bamako, Mali

For the processing of shea nuts (Karite), a press based on a hydraulic jack has been, developed by KIT. This press consists of a frame in which a table can be moved up by a hydraulic jack. A perforated cage is placed on the table and the mass in the cage is put under pressure against a press block by moving the table upward. The cage content is 8 1 and the maximum pressure is 125 kg/m². For,expelling the cake from the cage an expel-stand is made as well.

To provide the required pressure a 30 ton lorry jack is applied (make NIKE, from Sweden). Recently it has been decided to equip the jack with an improved pump, which can withstand the forces exerted on it. This pump is based on parts of the 50 ton jack made by NIKE and a specially made pump-cylinder and pump-plunger. To facilitate the cooking process, an oven is required. Press, expel-stand and oven parts are manufactured by a workshop in Bamako, Mali. The price 1987 for a press and expel-stand is F CFA 400 000, for the oven F CFA 40 000. Recently, its manufacture has also been taken up by the IBE (Institut Burkinabe d'Energie), Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Figure 29: Shea Nut Press, GTZ/GATE.

Source: GTZ/GATE

Processing capacity and oil recovery are given in Chapters 3.1 and 4.1.

IPI, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

IPI has developed a complete line of equipment for the processing of sunflowerseed, according to the dry process. At first only decorticating, heating and pressing at high pressures were applied but with disappointing results. Later a rollermill and an improved “cooking method" were introduced. The results with this equipment seem to be comparable to those obtained with the equipment available from UNATA.

Figures

The heart of the equipment, the press, is based on a shear jack system. The press can process 21 kg decorticated, rolled and “cooked" sunflowerseed per batch in a one-hour cycle.

Figure 33: IPI Oil Press

Weight and capacity of the IPI equipment are given in Table 16.

Table 16: Weight and Capacity of IPI Equipment

The press is 3.65 m high and requires a sturdy foundation and quite some space. IPI reports (Chungu A.S.) a daily capacity with 7 operators of 210 kg seed (140 kg decorticated seed), giving 42 kg oil. The price of a complete IPI sunflowerseed processing unit is (1987) T. Sh 250000 (about US $ 4000).

Major exporters

UNATA, Ramsel, Belgium

UNATA manufactures a nearly complete line of equipment for the processing of oil palm fruit and oil seeds. The central piece is the UNATA spindle press, with a cage content of 17 1, and a capacity of about 10 kg per batch in a 30-minute cycle.

Processing capacity and oil recovery are given in Table 9 and for sunflowerseed in detail in Chapters 3.2 and 4.2.

Weight and capacity of the UNATA equipment for sunflowerseed processing are given in Table 17.

Table 17: Weight and Capacity of UNATA Equipment

KIT has reported a daily capacity with 6 operators of 150 kg sunflowerseed ( 100 kg decorticated seed), giving 29 kg oil and with 15 operators of 300 kg seed (200 kg decorticated seed) giving 58 kg oil.

Prices of these machines are (1987, exfactory, packed):

Tool Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Tool Foundation co-ordinates the manufacture and sale of the sunflowerseed decorticator/palmnut cracker from the Netherlands (see Figure 14). Its price (1987) is about FL (Dutch Gulden) 3000.