ABSTRACT
There were 309 million metric tons of oilseeds, which include soybeans, cottonseed, peanuts, sunflowers, and rapeseed produced worldwide in 2001 (USDA, 2001). The world exports of oilseeds were valued at $8.6 billion in the year 2000, with soybeans accounting for more than half of this production. Other significant annual oilseed crops included canola, flaxseed, safflower, linseed, corn oil, and castor (USDA, 2001). These oils have edible uses in baking or frying fats, margarine, and salad or cooking oils, as well as industrial applications in paints, varnishes, plasticizers, resins, lubricants, greases, and coatings, for cosmetic uses, and pharmaceuticals.
