Recovery of phytosterols from residual vegetable oil streams

Method for recovering phytosterols from tall oil pitch (TOP) by a sequence of reaction and separation steps, comprising the steps of:

• a) contacting TOP with a solvent comprising methanol at a temperature above 25 degrees and under 100 degrees C. thereby forming a TOP solvent mixture;
• b) separating the TOP solvent mixture, without saponification, into at least two separate process streams or phases wherein a first process stream or phase is enriched in acidic pitch components and a second process stream or phase is enriched in free sterols and bound sterols in the form of steryl esters;
• c) subjecting the second process stream or phase enriched in free sterols and steryl esters to treatment with at least one alcohol and at least one catalyst thereby forming a reaction mixture wherein at least a portion of the steryl esters is liberated as free sterols without saponification, wherein step c) is achieved by
• a transesterification promoting said steryl esters being liberated as free sterols and formation of fatty acid alkyl esters (FAAE's) corresponding to said steryl esters;
• and
• d) separating free sterols from the reaction mixture of step c).