Canola oil is made at a processing facility by slightly heating and then crushing the seed. Almost all commercial canola oil is then refined using hexane. Finally, the crude oil is refined using water precipitation and organic acid, "bleaching" with clay, and deodorizing using steam distillation.[23] About 43% of a seed is oil;[24] the remainder is a rapeseed meal that is used as high quality animal feed. About 23 kg (51 lb) of rapeseed makes 10 L (2.64 US gal) of canola oil. Canola oil is a key ingredient in many foods. Its reputation as a healthy oil has created high demand in markets around the world, and overall it is the third-most widely consumed vegetable oil.[citation needed]
The oil has many nonfood uses and, like soybean oil, is often used interchangeably with petroleum-based oils - nonrenewable resource]]s in products, including industrial lubricants, biofuels, candles, lipsticks, and newspaper inks depending on the price on the spot market. Canola oil is also recommended by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine for use as a fertility-preserving vaginal lubrication.[25]
The average density of canola oil is 0.92 g/ml.[26]