As Upland cotton production was expanded from the United States to other countries, the use of cottonseed oil for food and protein for animal feed became common in all the cotton growing areas in the world.
What is the global production of cottonseed protein?
The global production of cottonseed protein is estimated to be about 11 million metric tons annually. In fact, cottonseed is the second most important potential source of plant proteins after soybean (Spadaro and Gardner, 1979).
How long has cottonseed oil been used?
There is a long history of cottonseed oil utilization going back more than 100 years. This arose along with the cotton plantation in the new world and cottonseed oil dominated the vegetable oil market until the rise of soybean oil and canola oil in the 1950s.
Is there a genetic improvement in oil accumulation of cottonseed?
However, the genetic improvement in oil accumulation of cottonseed is constrained by the rather limited variation among the elite Upland cotton (G. hirsutum) cultivars and lines as the result of extensive selection within the species toward improving lint yield and quality.