What does it cost to make a tonne of crude soybean oil?
Douglas Insights prices 24 inputs for a tonne of crude soybean oil in 4 countries from 22 documents: 1 raw materials, 0 packaging materials, the utility tariffs and the production wage, each with its publisher and year. The report multiplies them by the consumption per tonne, balanced across 5 process steps, and gives the direct cash cost of a tonne in every country.
Direct cash cost means raw materials, packaging, energy and water, and the crew on the line: what a crude soybean oil producer pays for each tonne before capital, maintenance, overhead and financing. Those belong to the plant project report; this page and this report stop at the tonne. The reference plant is 50,000 t/y at steady state; base period calendar year 2022–2026.
China (traded price not yet sourced) and South Africa (traded price not yet sourced): not yet published. A country is dropped rather than priced with a proxy.
Which process route is crude soybean oil costed on?
A crude soybean oil line runs 5 process steps, from soybean receiving, cleaning and drying to oil desolventizing (miscella solvent evaporation and hexane recovery); each is a unit operation from a published process norm, and the report carries the yield and loss of every step so the inputs per tonne of finished product close.
- Soybean receiving, cleaning and drying. Source: US EPA.
- Cracking and dehulling (hull aspiration). Source: US EPA.
- Conditioning and flaking. Source: US EPA.
- Hexane solvent extraction (countercurrent extractor), crude soybean oil line. Source: National Oilseed Processors Association.
- Oil desolventizing (miscella solvent evaporation and hexane recovery). Source: US EPA.
What do the raw materials for crude soybean oil cost in each country?
1 raw materials for crude soybean oil are priced in each of the 4 countries: soya beans. Prices are customs unit values and producer prices for the year shown, in US dollars per tonne. Soya beans shows the widest spread, from USD 435 a tonne in Brazil to USD 501 in Saudi Arabia.
| Raw material, USD per t | United States | Germany | Brazil | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soya beans (HS 120190) | 470 2024 | 473 2024 | 435 2024 | 501 2024 |
Sources: UN Comtrade. Consumption per tonne, the cost each material adds and the material balance are in the report.
What do the co-products of crude soybean oil sell for?
The route of crude soybean oil also yields soybean meal co-product (hs 230400). The report credits each co-product at its own traded price in the same country, so the cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil carries only its share of the feedstock; the yield of each co-product per tonne is in the report.
| Co-product, USD per t | United States | Germany | Brazil | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soybean meal co-product (HS 230400) | 435 2024 | 457 2024 | 419 2024 | 466 2024 |
What do energy and water cost a crude soybean oil line in each country?
3 utilities are priced on the crude soybean oil route: electricity, industrial, natural gas, industrial and water, industrial. Tariffs are industrial, all-in and exclude value-added tax (VAT), each shown with its year. Electricity runs from USD 0.080 a kilowatt-hour (kWh) in Saudi Arabia to USD 0.218 in Germany, the widest gap of any utility input.
| Tariff | United States | Germany | Brazil | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity, industrial USD/kWh | 0.086 2025 | 0.218 2025 | 0.124 2024 | 0.080 2025 |
| Natural gas, industrial USD/Nm³ | 0.179 2025 | 0.841 2025 | 0.524 2025 | 0.076 2025 |
| Water, industrial USD/m³ | 2.48 2026 | 5.79 2025 | 10.70 2025 | 3.11 2025 |
Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Agency, San Antonio Water System (SAWS), Eurostat, Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen, Empresa de Pesquisa Energetica (EPE), Brazil, ES Gas Distribuidora de Gas Natural, per ARSP (Espirito S…, URAE-1 / Government of Sao Paulo State, Marafiq (Power and Water Utility Company for Jubail and Y… and S&P Global Commodity Insights. Consumption per tonne of product is in the report.
What does labour cost on a crude soybean oil line in each country?
The production operator wage runs from USD 5,339 a year in Brazil to USD 44,170 in the United States, base wages from the statistics office of each country before employer on-costs; the crew per shift is sized from the process norms (US EPA, National Oilseed Processors Association) and stated in the report. Wages enter the cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil through that crew on every shift.
| Wage | United States | Germany | Brazil | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production operator, USD a year | 44,170 2025 | 43,120 2022 | 5,339 2025 | 12,586 2025 |
| Source | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | Eurostat | Ministerio do Trabalho e Emprego (MTE), Brazil | Argaam (reporting General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) Labour Market Statistics Q2 2025) |
Where are the inputs for crude soybean oil cheapest?
Inputs for crude soybean oil are cheapest in different countries: soya beans (hs 120190) is cheapest in Brazil at USD 435 a tonne; electricity is cheapest in Saudi Arabia at USD 0.080 a kWh; the lowest operator wage is in Brazil. No single input decides the cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil: the report weighs every input by its consumption and ranks the countries on the direct cash cost.
What is the traded price of crude soybean oil in each country?
Douglas Insights records the traded price of crude soybean oil between USD 924 a tonne in Brazil and USD 1,105 a tonne in Saudi Arabia across 4 lead countries. That customs unit value is the ex-works proxy against which the report measures the direct cost of a tonne in each country.
| Lead country | USD per t | Basis | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 1,002 | UN Comtrade | 2024 |
| Germany | 929 | UN Comtrade | 2024 |
| China | – | Being sourced | |
| Brazil | 924 | UN Comtrade | 2024 |
| Saudi Arabia | 1,105 | UN Comtrade | 2024 |
| South Africa | – | Being sourced |
Prices are customs unit values from UN Comtrade and producer prices where a production survey publishes them, such as Eurostat Production Communautaire (PRODCOM); one rule per country, stated in the report and not changed to move a result. Monthly price series are in the Douglas Insights price pages.
What moves the cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil?
Raw materials net of the co-product credit weigh more than three fifths of the direct cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil in United States, so the price of the main feedstock moves the cost more than any tariff or wage; the report moves the main feedstock, energy and the exchange rate by ten percent each and shows the cost of a tonne in every country under each.
- Raw materials net of the co-product credit: more than three fifths of the direct cost in United States.
- Packaging: under a twentieth of the direct cost in United States.
- Utilities: a twentieth to a tenth of the direct cost in United States.
- Direct labour: a twentieth to a tenth of the direct cost in United States.
What limits a production cost figure for crude soybean oil?
Three things limit a production cost figure for crude soybean oil: the traded price is a customs unit value, not a contract price; input years differ (calendar year 2022–2026) and a price moves with its market; and consumption per tonne comes from published norms rather than one plant's meters. The report states each limit beside the figure it affects.
Douglas Exclusive: the crude soybean oil feedstock ledger
Douglas Insights counts 22 documents behind the 24 inputs on this page. The feedstock ledger in the report lists every input with its publisher, document, code and year, so a buyer can put the same figure in front of a supplier.
| Input | Countries priced | Years | Publishers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soya beans (HS 120190) | 4 | 2024 | UN Comtrade |
| Soybean meal co-product (HS 230400) | 4 | 2024 | UN Comtrade |
| Electricity, industrial | 4 | 2024–2025 | U.S. Energy Information Administration, Eurostat, Empresa de Pesquisa Energetica (EPE), Brazil, Marafiq (Power and Water Utility Company for Jubail and Y… |
| Natural gas, industrial | 4 | 2025 | International Energy Agency, ES Gas Distribuidora de Gas Natural, per ARSP (Espirito S…, S&P Global Commodity Insights |
| Water, industrial | 4 | 2025–2026 | San Antonio Water System (SAWS), Statistisches Landesamt des Freistaates Sachsen, URAE-1 / Government of Sao Paulo State, Marafiq (Power and Water Utility Company for Jubail and Y… |
| Production operator wage | 4 | 2022–2025 | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Eurostat, Ministerio do Trabalho e Emprego (MTE), Brazil, Argaam (reporting GASTAT Labour Market Statistics Q2 2025) |
Methodology: how is the crude soybean oil production cost built?
Four stages build the crude soybean oil production cost report: the process route and material balance from published norms (5 steps); input prices from customs and production statistics, tariff schedules and statistics offices (24 inputs, 22 documents, 4 countries); the direct cash cost of a tonne as consumption times price, with labour over steady-state output; and the check of each country against its traded price, where a cost far above the price holds the country until the input is re-checked.
Nothing is typed: every figure traces to a document, and the Douglas Insights research methodology explains how the Research Desk reviews each edition. Capital cost, financing and returns for the same line are in the manufacturing plant project report.
Market reports, plant reports and price pages for the same chain sit in the Douglas Insights industry hub; the production cost hub collects every production cost report.
Inside the report
01Executive Summary
Direct cash cost of a tonne of crude soybean oil in each lead country, lowest and highest named, key findings.
02Product, Specification and Scope
What is costed, what is not, the base period of every input.
03Process Route and Material Balance
Steps, yields and losses per tonne of product, with the technical source of each.
04Raw Material Consumption and Prices
Consumption per tonne and price by country for every raw material.
05Utilities: Consumption and Tariffs
Electricity, gas, steam and water per tonne and the tariff in each country.
06Packaging: Norms and Prices
Packaging materials per tonne and their price by country.
07Direct Labour: Crew, Shifts and Wages
Crew per shift, shifts and the operator wage by country.
08Direct Cash Cost per Tonne by Country
The waterfall: raw materials, utilities, packaging, labour.
09Cost Against the Traded Price
Gross margin at the customs unit value in each country.
10Sensitivity
Main feedstock, energy and currency, each moved ten percent.
11Douglas Exclusive: The Feedstock Ledger
Every input with its publisher, document and year.
12Methodology and Sources
Countries, documents and codes counted; how the Research Desk checks each edition.
AAppendix: Full Data Tables
Every input and every cost line by country.
Questions buyers ask
What is the traded price of crude soybean oil in each country?
USD 924 to USD 1,105 a tonne across the lead countries: United States USD 1,002; Germany USD 929; Brazil USD 924; Saudi Arabia USD 1,105. Each is a customs unit value or production statistic for that country, the ex-works proxy the cost is measured against.
Which raw materials go into crude soybean oil and what do they cost?
1 raw materials are priced in every country: soya beans (hs 120190). USD 435 a tonne in Brazil is the lowest price of soya beans (hs 120190) among the lead countries. Consumption per tonne and the cost each adds are in the report.
Where are the inputs for crude soybean oil cheapest?
USD 5,339 a year is the lowest operator wage of the lead countries, in Brazil. The report ranks the countries on the direct cash cost of a tonne, which weighs every input by its consumption; the page shows the inputs, the report the ranking.
What is in the crude soybean oil production cost report?
12 chapters and an Excel data pack: the process route and material balance, raw material, utility, packaging and labour consumption and prices by country, the direct cash cost of a tonne in each of 4 countries, the margin at the traded price, sensitivity, and the feedstock ledger with every source. Delivered within 48 hours of an order.
Does this report include capex, IRR or payback?
No. Capital investment, land, construction, equipment, financing, IRR, payback and capacity scenarios are the plant project report, which costs the same line in three capacities. A production cost buyer who upgrades within 90 days has the full price credited against the Professional or Enterprise edition.
How fast is the report delivered?
48 hours from a paid order to your email, as a PDF and an Excel data pack prepared on the current edition of every input. Another country or a different process route is quoted by the Research Desk.
Research & citation
This report is researched, built and reviewed by the Douglas Insights Research Desk under the Douglas Insights editorial standards. Material errors are logged in the corrections log. No section is sponsored.
Douglas Insights Inc (2026). Crude Soybean Oil Production Cost 2026. Report DI-PL-000040-PC, October 2026. https://www.douglasinsights.com/production-cost/crude_soybean_oil/