Raw, Virgin, Unrefined, Organic, Expeller pressed Coconut Oil – Which is Best?

There has been some chatting recently in the comments at the post with the best deals on organic virgin coconut oil about the prices and different types and brands available. Hopefully this will be helpful in understanding the various terms you see associated with coconut oil.

In some forums I belong to, I’ve read about the confusion and misinformation when trying to figure out the various words used to describe coconut oil: raw, unrefined, refined, expeller pressed, virgin, blah, blah, blah, and now I have a headache!

photo by Koshyk

I think I’ve figured it out, but if I messed up, please set me straight!

• Organic means that the coconuts are from areas that don’t use chemicals.
• From what I can pull together, “extra virgin” and “virgin” are the same – there are no industry standards to gauge this with. They both have to do with how many times the coconut meal (or coconut “meat”) was pressed to get the oil out. One time is called “extra virgin”, “virgin or “first pressed”. Another source said that “extra virgin” means the least amount of pressure (and therefore less heat) that is used, and “virgin” means more heat, more friction, but higher yields. I think the fact that most (all?) coconut oil comes from other countries muddies things up – we can have certain U.S. standards, or standardized terms, but it may mean different things depending on the country it comes from.
• “Raw“, “unrefined” and “refined” all have to do with how much heat is used to process the coconut oil. All coconut oils use some heat, because otherwise certain components won’t be removed that give an off taste. (And many sites noted that even in transport, the oil will be heated quite a bit.) Thankfully coconut oil isn’t harmed by heat, which is why it is a good oil to cook with. (As with all oils, it does have a smoking point that you don’t want to go over, though.) But the higher the heat, the more it is “processed”, and the less nutritional benefits you’ll receive when using it to cook with or on your skin (I love the coconut creams, lotions, etc. at this post, just scroll down.)
• Expeller pressed or mechanical pressed means no chemicals were used to remove the oil, but it was done “physically”, with a machine. The oil can be just expeller pressed, OR cold expeller pressed, which is tied in with the last point as far as the heat involved in processing. (Do you see why all this is so confusing?!)
• Refined, bleached, deodorized – this is the kind of coconut oil you can use if you don’t want a coconut taste or smell. It is still beneficial to us, but no where near as much as the unrefined. (I use it for recipes that a coconut flavor won’t “work” in.) Here is the best deals I found on the refined organic coconut oil. This is NOT “virgin coconut oil”.
  

MORE INFO ON THE BRANDS I RECOMMEND AT THIS POST: BEST PRICES ON ORGANIC, VIRGIN COCONUT OIL

• Cocopura: “raw” – 100-104*, cold/hand pressed, virgin, organic (good choice for a raw coconut oil if you want a smaller quantity)
• Nutiva: 170*, virgin, organic, expeller pressed (By the way, I was told they will be coming out with a “raw”, “cold centrifuged” coconut oil in April. It will be processed below 113*, and will be the same price as the Nutiva is now! He also said they’ll have some great promotional introductory prices.)
• Mountain Rose Herbs: “no higher than 100*” – this is also technically “raw” (under 113*), but they don’t advertise it as such for some reason (and only sell in large quantities), virgin, organic, cold pressed

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT TWO MORE BRANDS:

• Soapers Choice: it was brought my attention a while back, and again recently, that there is another much cheaper brand of virgin organic coconut oil available, distributed under the “Soapers Choice”/Columbus Foods label (read more in the comments at the post mentioned above). It is only $27.30/7# (almost a gallon) + $6.18 for shipping, depending on your zip code – this is almost $12 difference for a gallon! When I called the company they said this oil is cold pressed, virgin, & organic. Christine, a reader who has helped me look into this, has tried it and loves the taste. This is a great price, but the only thing that I wonder about is that the first time I called the company I was told their oil is heated to between 200*-250* in processing. The next time I called, they said it is heated to 116*, which does go along with the fact that it is “cold pressed”.
• Tropical Traditions: I tried their virgin coconut oil once and hope I just had a bad batch, because it had a terrible smell and taste, in my opinion. It is heated “at less than 212*”, and their prices are generally higher.

If I missed anything or you have anything else to add to this information, please do so!

***Read more about coconut oil!

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