High oleic soybeans present opportunity for farmers
Soybean growers eager to boost their profits should look at high oleic soybeans. A panel of experts discussed “The High Oleic Soybean Opportunity in New York” at the recent 2026 Summer Crop Summit hosted by the New York Corn & Soybean Growers Association at Rodman Lott & Son Farms in Seneca Falls. Drew Margolin, associate professor at Cornell University, moderated the panel of farmers Todd DuMond and Joe van Lieshout and van Lieshout’s nutritionist, Pablo Descole.
“What can get this adopted is neighbor-to-neighbor talking about it,” Margolin said. “At the university, we talk about ultra-processed foods.”
DuMond said that he started in high oleic soybeans in 2022 with eight acres. (Oleic acid is the most common fatty acid in nature.)
“It’s been a wild ride,” he said. “Demand is up. It’s a great feed and a great commodity for us to grow. We built our business as a feed product for dairy. It can be used in poultry and swine, but dairy is our bread and butter. Steady income will be in human consumption and industrial uses.”
Van Lieshout said that he had thought about high oleic soybeans a decade ago, but as a “pretty passive operator,” he didn’t jump on the bandwagon right away.
“I’ve always grown a lot of soybeans,” he said. “It’s seemed to take off in New York. The cows do well on them.”
High oleic soybeans produce between 70% and 75% oleic acid, compared with about 23% for standard soybeans. The heat stability and shelf life of oil from plants like soybeans bred to increase the amount of oleic acid in the oils may also be improved, per research from Oklahoma State University Extension.
“We are always trying to push the cows to produce more milk,” Descole said. “The type of fat in regular beans puts cows at higher risk.”
High oleic soybeans are rich in monounsaturated oleic acid and low in polyunsaturated linoleic and linolenic acids.
Margolin said that New York State – which is fifth in the nation for dairy production – has plenty of dairy farmers.
“Cows produce better milk through inputs,” he added. “Will consumers know this?”
Descole said “it helps when we feed cows a ration that raises the fat content at a good price.” Anything to help lower overhead for farmers can help increase profit margins.
“I was working with a company that fought feeding high oleic beans,” van Lieshout said. He lauded the fat and protein content of high oleic beans.
“High oleic soybeans are another tool in our toolbox,” DuMond said. “Many things factor into value, like replacement fat. As the industry develops, high oleic beans will have more applications and that will drive the price in different ways. If you’re going to have limited acres, we’re going to have to figure out ways to keep costs down for feed applications.”
Using high oleic beans for industrial applications may drive up prices for dairy operators.
Van Lieshout added that New York has spearheaded seeing high oleic soybeans go forward. He spoke with someone in Wisconsin who said that they tried them 10 years ago, but their nutritionist did not know how to use them in a ration. It didn’t work out. But last he heard, they’re going to try high oleic soybeans again.
“I want to take my hat off to anyone in New York” willing to collaborate in growing and feeding high oleic soybeans, DuMond said. “There’s resilience in our industries. There are a lot of gambles and risks people have to take.”
DuMond praised the stability of high oleic oil and believes it will become a larger market share. He said that demand exceeded supply but that farmers “managed it fairly well. Supplies ran out a few months ago, so farmers pivoted to different soybeans. But you didn’t see a big dropoff. Beans are a great tool, but they’re not the end-all, be-all. The market is doing a good job in finding the balance.”
He thinks it will be 2028 or 2029 before farmers will have an adequate seed supply for growing high oleic soybeans.
As for doing their own roasting, DuMond said it’s a time-consuming process. “There is value in having someone doing it for you,” he said. “It is a hard process.”
Margolin added that he loves “the idea that we in New York are on the cutting edge. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
