Vegetable oil is more refined than olive oil, and because of this, there are several more steps involved in the process. “First, the fruit or seeds must be planted, harvested, and cleaned. Next, the oil is extracted by mechanical or chemical extraction. The majority of vegetable oils are made by chemical or ‘solvent’ extraction, which typically involves heating the seeds and mixing them with a solvent called hexane. The oil then undergoes the refining, bleaching, and deodorizing (RBD) processes to create a consistent, shelf-stable, neutral-flavor product,” says Shapiro.
