Ghee is milk fat clarified by heating. Refined oil is a vegetable oil that has been industrially degummed, neutralised, bleached and deodorised. On USDA figures about 66 per cent of ghee's fatty acids are saturated, against roughly 11 to 21 per cent for sunflower, soybean and rice bran oil. India's dietary guidelines advise limiting both, and rank neither as the one to use.
This compares composition and rules, not health. If you have high cholesterol, diabetes or any other condition, follow your doctor's advice on fats.
At a glance
- Refining degums, neutralises, bleaches and deodorises a crude oil; ICMR-NIN notes it removes odour and some antioxidants and phytosterols "without altering the fatty acid composition".
- About 66 per cent of ghee's fatty acids are saturated on USDA figures, against about 11 per cent for sunflower, 16 for soybean and 21 for rice bran oil.
- Ghee carries cholesterol (256 mg per 100 g) and vitamin A; the refined oils carry neither, but more vitamin E.
- FSSAI requires refined oils to be named by their source oil, with an acid value of at most 0.6, moisture at most 0.10 per cent and trans fat at most 2 per cent from 1 January 2022; rice bran oil must always be refined.
- ICMR-NIN counts both inside 27 to 30 g of visible fat a day on 2,000 kcal, limits ghee to 1 to 2 teaspoons, and advises moderating omega-6-rich oils; neither is ranked the winner.
What is the difference between ghee and refined oil?
They come from different raw materials and different processes. Ghee is made by concentrating milk fat and then heating it until its water evaporates. Refined oil is pressed or solvent-extracted from seeds or bran, then cleaned in several industrial steps. Ghee carries cholesterol and vitamin A; the three refined oils compared here carry neither.
FSSAI defines ghee as a fatty product derived exclusively from milk by processes that result in "almost total removal of water and milk solids-not-fat", with at most 0.5 per cent moisture and at least 99.5 per cent milk fat. A 2023 review from the National Dairy Research Institute describes heating the concentrated fat at 110 to 120 °C for 10 to 20 minutes, which drives off the moisture and develops the flavour.
FSSAI's definition of refined vegetable oil, by contrast, is a list of processes: extraction by pressing or solvent, deacidification with alkali or by physical refining, optional degumming with phosphoric or citric acid or an enzyme, bleaching with adsorbent earth or activated carbon, and deodorising with steam. No other chemical agent is allowed. Our comparison of ghee, butter and oil for cooking covers kitchen use.
What does refining do to a vegetable oil?
Refining strips out the parts of a crude oil that would cloud it, darken it, give it taste and smell, or shorten its life. A 2022 review by Said Gharby of Ibn Zohr University describes a sequence of steps, each removing particular compounds, aiming for an oil that is clear, colourless and rather neutral in taste.
- Degumming. Water, phosphoric or citric acid, or an enzyme removes the "gums": mainly phospholipids, with some carbohydrates, proteins and traces of metals.
- Neutralising. Caustic soda turns the free fatty acids into soap, which is separated off and washed out; the oil is then dried under vacuum.
- Bleaching. Acid-activated bleaching earth or activated carbon, at 80 to 120 °C under vacuum, adsorbs carotenoids, chlorophyll, peroxides and soap traces, and is filtered off.
- Dewaxing. Waxy oils such as rice bran and sunflower are chilled to 10 to 15 °C so the waxes crystallise and can be filtered.
- Deodorising. Steam is passed through the oil at 180 to 240 °C under a high vacuum, stripping out volatile odour and flavour compounds and free fatty acids.
Physical refining skips the caustic soda and removes the free fatty acids by steam distillation during deodorising. The review lists the costs too. Refining removes some tocopherols (vitamin E compounds), phytosterols, squalene and polyphenols, and deodorising heat can turn some fatty acids from the cis to the trans form and create contaminants such as 3-MCPD esters.
ICMR-NIN agrees that refining removes odour and extends shelf life, but also small amounts of antioxidants and phytosterols, "without altering the fatty acid composition". It adds that refining adds several additives, including preservatives.
How do ghee and refined oils compare in fatty acids?
Ghee's fatty acids are about two-thirds saturated. Sunflower, soybean and rice bran oils are mostly unsaturated: sunflower and soybean chiefly polyunsaturated linoleic acid, rice bran split between monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. Ghee also carries cholesterol and vitamin A, which these plant oils do not.
For ghee we use USDA's record for anhydrous butter oil, as in our other Journal articles. USDA's oil records do not say whether the samples were refined; since ICMR-NIN says refining leaves fatty acid composition unchanged, those rows should broadly hold for refined oil. Vitamin E is partly lost in refining, so that row may differ for a given bottle.
| Per 100 g (USDA FoodData Central) | Ghee (anhydrous butter oil) | Sunflower oil (linoleic type) | Soybean oil | Rice bran oil |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 876 kcal | 884 kcal | 884 kcal | 884 kcal |
| Total fat | 99.5 g | 100 g | 100 g | 100 g |
| Saturated fat | 61.9 g | 10.3 g | 15.6 g | 19.7 g |
| Monounsaturated fat | 28.7 g | 19.5 g | 22.8 g | 39.3 g |
| Polyunsaturated fat | 3.7 g | 65.7 g | 57.7 g | 35.0 g |
| Linoleic acid (omega-6, 18:2) | 2.3 g | 65.7 g | 51.0 g | 33.4 g |
| Alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3, 18:3) | 1.5 g | 0 g | 6.8 g | 1.6 g |
| Saturated share of fatty acids | 65.6 % | 10.8 % | 16.2 % | 21.0 % |
| Cholesterol | 256 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0 mg |
| Vitamin A (RAE) | 840 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg | 0 µg |
| Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) | 2.8 mg | 41.1 mg | 8.2 mg | 32.3 mg |
The saturated share is saturated fat divided by the three groups added together: 61.9 ÷ 94.3 for ghee (61.9 + 28.7 + 3.7), 10.3 ÷ 95.5 for sunflower, 15.6 ÷ 96.1 for soybean and 19.7 ÷ 94.0 for rice bran. Why the groups add up to less than total fat is explained in our article on whether ghee is saturated fat.
Per tablespoon, using USDA's weights of 12.8 g for butter oil and 13.6 g for each oil, that is about 7.9 g of saturated fat in ghee, 1.4 g in sunflower oil, 2.1 g in soybean oil and 2.7 g in rice bran oil.
What does FSSAI require of refined oils?
FSSAI sets one standard for every refined vegetable oil, on top of the standard for the oil it is made from. The oil must be clear, free from rancidity and adulterants, have no added colour or flavour, and be named on the label by its source oil.
- Processes: only those in the definition, ending with steam deodorisation; permitted food additives may be present.
- Acid value: not more than 0.6, against up to 2.50 for soybean oil and 6.0 for sunflower oil under their own standards.
- Moisture: not more than 0.10 per cent by weight.
- Trans fatty acids: not more than 2 per cent by weight from 1 January 2022.
- Argemone oil: the test must be negative.
- Solvent: only food-grade hexane may be used for extraction, and refined solvent-extracted oils may hold no more than 5.00 ppm of it.
Some oils must always be refined. FSSAI's rice bran oil standard says it shall be sold for human consumption only after refining, and requires at least 1.0 per cent oryzanol. The soybean and sunflower standards require refining only when the oil is solvent-extracted.
What are the trans-fat limits for refined oil in India?
Refined vegetable oil may contain no more than 2 per cent trans fatty acids by weight from 1 January 2022, down from 5 per cent and then 3 per cent from 1 January 2021. A separate FSSAI rule caps industrial trans fat in foods made with oils and fats at 2 per cent of their total fat.
That second rule, in FSSAI's Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales regulations, also applies from 1 January 2022. It defines "industrial" trans fatty acids to exclude those from dairy, meat and fish and their products. USDA's soybean oil record lists 0.533 g of trans fat per 100 g, well under 2 per cent; its other three records give no trans figure.
ICMR-NIN's concern is chiefly partial hydrogenation. It explains that vanaspati is made this way, says trans fats are harmful and should be avoided, and advises against vanaspati as a cooking medium. Our ghee and palm oil comparison covers vanaspati's standard.
What does ICMR-NIN advise about ghee and oil?
Use both sparingly, within one daily visible-fat limit. ICMR-NIN's 2024 guidelines say not more than 27 to 30 g of visible fat a day is needed on a 2,000 kcal diet, which can include cooking oils and ghee or butter, and that ghee or butter should be limited to 1 to 2 teaspoons a day, or avoided if possible.
- Overall limit. Visible fat should be 20 to 50 g a day depending on energy needs; 20 g for sedentary adult women and 30 g for sedentary men.
- Variety, not a blend. Guideline 7 advises choosing a variety of oilseeds, nuts, nutri-cereals and legumes to meet the need for fats and essential fatty acids. It does not prescribe a combination of cooking oils.
- Saturated fat. Limit oils and fats high in it, such as ghee and butter. Coconut oil and palm oil are also named as sources.
- Omega-6. Moderate oils high in omega-6 fat, and include omega-3 foods such as nuts, seeds, soyabean, green leafy vegetables and fenugreek seeds.
- Reheating. Repeatedly heated oil generates harmful compounds. Oil used once for frying can be filtered and used for curries within a day or two, but not for frying again.
So is ghee better than oil?
Neither the guidelines nor the standards say so. Ghee is far higher in saturated fat and carries cholesterol; refined oils are mostly unsaturated but processed, and some are high in omega-6 fat. ICMR-NIN advises limiting ghee and moderating oils, so its guidance is about how much, not which one wins.
Ghee brings what FSSAI calls an "especially developed flavour"; refined oil is made to taste neutral. If you have a medical condition, the choice belongs with your doctor.
The short version
Ghee is milk fat clarified by heating; refined oil is a vegetable oil that has been degummed, neutralised, bleached and deodorised. About 66 per cent of ghee's fatty acids are saturated, against about 11 to 21 per cent for sunflower, soybean and rice bran oil. FSSAI caps trans fat in refined oil at 2 per cent. ICMR-NIN advises keeping all visible fat to about 27 to 30 g a day on a 2,000 kcal diet, with ghee at 1 to 2 teaspoons at most. If you have a medical condition, follow your doctor's advice.
Sources
Further reading behind the figures above. Himdhara's own numbers — yields, batch results — come from our production records and the batch reports on the lab reports page.
- Gharby S (2022). Refining Vegetable Oils: Chemical and Physical Refining. The Scientific World Journal.
- Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (2022). Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011 (2.1.8 Milk Fat Products; 2.2.1 Oils). FSSAI compendium, version XXVI.
- Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (2021). Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011. FSSAI compendium, version V.
- ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition (2024). Dietary Guidelines for Indians (Guideline 7). ICMR-NIN.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture (2019). Butter oil, anhydrous. FoodData Central (SR Legacy).