Fascinating Nature
Seeds That Give Us Oil
The oil in your kitchen came from tiny seeds! Let's meet the seeds that are squeezed to give us oil.
Did you know?
A peanut does not grow on a tree. Its pods grow under the soil!
One sunflower head can hold up to 1,000 seeds. Many are pressed to make oil.
Ripe sesame pods split open and drop their seeds. Sesame is thought to be the oldest oil seed crop!
Try this: Oil Label Hunt
Do this with an adult
With an adult, look at the oil bottles in your kitchen. Read the labels together. Is it groundnut, mustard, sunflower, sesame or coconut oil? Draw each seed next to its oil. Do not open or taste anything.
Go further: The Old Oil Press
Long ago, oil was made in a ghani. Seeds went into a big wooden bowl. A bullock walked round and round, turning a heavy pole. The pole crushed mustard or sesame seeds, and oil came out. Today, big machines do this job. Some people still like oil made the slow, old way.