Tomato seed oil facts for kids

Tomato seeds

Tomato seed oil is a special kind of vegetable oil. It's made by taking the seeds from tomatoes and squeezing the oil out of them.

People first started looking into making oil from tomato seeds in the United States way back in 1914. They gathered seeds from different places and pressed them to get the oil. This oil was then cleaned up to make it pale yellow. It was even thought to be good enough to use in salad dressings!

Today, people are paying more attention to tomato seeds again. Why? Because when factories make tomato products like juice or sauce, they end up with a lot of leftover seeds. These seeds are the biggest part of the waste! For example, in Greece, over a million tons of tomatoes are processed every year. All those seeds could make up to 2,000 tons of oil! The oil from Greek seeds has been found to have a lot of healthy fats, especially linoleic acid.

About the Tomato Plant

Tomatoes belong to a plant family called Solanaceae.

• Species: The scientific name for the common tomato plant is Solanum lycopersicum.

Growing Tomatoes in India

Tomatoes are grown all over India! Here's what they need to grow well:

• Soil: Tomatoes like soil that drains well. It can be sandy or even heavy clay. The best soil has a pH between 6.0 and 7.0.
• Plant: A tomato plant is a bushy, spreading plant with a unique smell. It doesn't have thorns.
• Cultivation: Major states in India where tomatoes are grown include Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka, U.P, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam.
• Climate: Tomatoes love warm weather with lots of moisture and sunshine.

Tomato Seeds: A Hidden Treasure

Tomato seeds might be small, but they contain many interesting things!

• What's Inside: Tomato seeds have about 8.95% moisture, 27.62% protein, 24.40% fat (which is the oil!), 0.56% lecithin, 13.60% fiber, and 4.20% ash. They also have other extracts.
• Waste Not, Want Not: Even though seeds are important, they only make up about 0.5% of a whole tomato. They are often leftover waste from food factories that make tomato juice, sauce, ketchup, or colors like lycopene.
• Getting the Seeds: These seeds can be taken out of the waste products using a method called flotation. In India, it's estimated that about 7,500 tons of tomato seeds could be collected each year!

What's in a Tomato Seed?

Here's a quick look at what tomato seeds are made of:

All About Tomato Seed Oil

Tomato seeds contain about 24-25% oil. When they are crushed in machines called expellers, about 15-17% of this oil can be collected.

Tomato oil is usually brown and has a strong smell. It contains different kinds of fats:

• Saturated Fats: About 14-18% of the oil is made of saturated fatty acids.
• Unsaturated Fats: A large part, about 76-80%, is made of unsaturated fatty acids, which are often considered healthier fats.

Fats in Tomato Seed Oil

Here are some of the main fatty acids found in tomato seed oil:

How Tomato Seed Oil is Used

Tomato seed oil can be used in several ways:

• It can be used to make special kinds of alkyds for paints that don't turn yellow over time.
• It can be an ingredient in making margarine.
• It's useful for making soaps.
• It can also be used to prepare salad oils.