The effect of microwave pretreatment and moisture levels of Camelina sativa seeds on the quality of extracted oil by cold press was investigated. The seed moistures were adjusted to 2.5%, 5.0%, 7.5%, and 10.0% and pretreated with microwaves for 0, 1, 2, and 3 min. Microwave pretreatment (3 min) of the seeds with 2.5% moisture increased the oil extraction yield by ∼11% compared to the control sample. The highest amount of acidity (0.564 g FFA·g−1 oil), peroxide value (2.4 meq O2·kg−1 oil), carotenoid (5.26 mg·kg−1 oil), and browning index (0.710) were found in the oil extracted from seeds with 10% moisture and 3 min microwave pretreatment. The total phenolic compound was increased by microwave pretreatment but was mitigated by the seed moisture content, and the highest amount (208.24 mg caffeic acid·100 g−1 oil) was observed at 3 min microwave pretreatment of the seeds with 2.5% moisture. Chlorophyll content decreased by both microwave pretreatment and seed moisture content in camelina oil. Generally, the fatty acid composition of the extracted oils was not affected by the seed pretreatments. In conclusion, pretreatment of the camelina seeds before oil extraction is suggested to obtain a high oil extraction yield with a good quality oil.
