THE PRODUCTION OF CORK" OIL. 17 



cake, as indicated by the averages, agree fairly well with the opinions 

 expressed by the operators of both types. Since the moisture con- 

 tent may be much affected by the age of the material and the con- 

 ditions under which it was shipped, figures relating to the percentage 

 of moisture may not necessarily be indicative of actual conditions. 



Attention is directed to some of the figures in section A of Table I. 

 Mill 2 furnished germ material of exceedingly low fat content. This 

 mill also reported a low yield of oil from a bushel of corn. It is evi- 

 dent, therefore, that the degerminating was not efficiently performed. 

 Mill 7 shows an excessive percentage of fat in its oil cake, but also a 

 germ material greatly above the average in fat content, indicating a 

 good separation of germs, but probably less efficient handling of the 

 expeller. 



ECONOMICS OF CORN-OIL PRODUCTION. 



To determine the cost of producing corn oil is exceedingly difficult, 

 and no producer was found who had any clear idea as to just what it 

 cost him or how to determine the cost. The difficulty lies in the fact 

 that in the general processes of making hominy and starch the re- 

 moval of the germ is a necessary factor in obtaining the best 

 products. This cost, therefore, should be charged to those products 

 in the manufacture of which it is a necessary process and not to 

 the cost of producing the oil. The cost of the oil production should 

 be calculated only on the operations involved after the germs have 

 been separated. Thus, in the dry process the cost charges for the oil 

 should begin after the germs have passed through the hominy reels 

 and the fine meal removed. In the wet process the germs must be 

 washed several times in order to save the adhering starch, and the 

 cost charges for the oil should therefore begin with the expelling of 

 the moisture. If the net revenue from corn oil is to-be compared 

 with that obtainable when the germs are disposed of as feed, the 

 cost of expelling the moisture and drying must be eliminated, since 

 both operations are necessary in order to prepare the germs for feed. 

 The cost, therefore, of producing corn oil in the industries here 

 described is limited to the cost of expelling the oil and preparing 

 it for market. 



COST OF EXPELLING CORN OIL. 



Among starch manufacturers the impression seems to prevail that 

 the cost of expelling corn oil approximates half a cent per pound of 

 oil. Since the cost per pound depends on the amount of oil obtained 

 from a given quantity of germ material, it follows that the greater 

 the fat content of the germ the lower the cost per pound of oil will be. 

 Consequently, the character of the germ material as regards the 

 presence of foreign matter is an important factor. For this reason 

 it will cost more per pound to expel the oil from dry-process germs 



