Salute Santé! Grapeseed Oil: Cold-Pressed Grapeseed Oil

Valentin Humer, founder of Salute Santé!®, is a pioneer in sustainable, gourmet cooking oils. With a passion for health and environmental responsibility, he introduced 100% cold-pressed grapeseed oil, a zero-waste, upcycled alternative sourced from winery byproducts. Loved by top chefs, Salute Santé!® Grapeseed Oil enhances flavors with its light, nutty taste while being the lowest in saturated fat and highest in essential linoleic acid. Valentin’s commitment to clean, green, and Non-GMO food production has made Salute Santé!® a leader in the industry for over 30 years. DeliveryRank offers you an exclusive interview.

Salute Santé! has been producing cold-pressed grapeseed oil for over 30 years, emphasizing sustainability by upcycling vineyard grape seeds. Can you elaborate on the environmental benefits of this process and how it contributes to a zero-waste approach in the winemaking industry?

We’re actually a fruit oil made from grapes, which means our grapes are not grown specifically for grapeseed oil. Instead, our oil is 100% upcycled from the byproducts of the wine industry. It’s a unique situation—when we started in the ’90s, our goal was always to create a zero-waste food.

Coming from Austria, sustainability was a way of life for me. I grew up with parents who instilled the value of minimizing waste. We had a huge garden, grew our own food, and rarely shopped at conventional supermarkets. That mindset stayed with me when I moved to the States. During my classical apprenticeship in some of the finest hotels, I learned the importance of quality ingredients, including cold-pressed oils.

When I discovered grapeseed oil, I was fascinated by the fact that it could be made without using additional land, water, or fertilizer—just by utilizing what’s left after winemaking. After pressing grapes for wine, what remains is called pomace—a mix of stems, skins, and seeds. We separate out the seeds, dry them, and store them for years if needed. Thanks to our cold-press method, we’re able to extract fresh oil every day, running our presses 24/7. This sets us apart from other oils, like olive oil, where the quality starts to decline as soon as it’s pressed.

Beyond the oil, we also upcycle the remaining press cake into a nutrient-rich powder, packed with antioxidants and fiber. This superfood powder is used in nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and the baking industry. By fully utilizing every part of the grape, we’ve achieved true zero-waste food production—something very few companies can claim. And we’re not stopping there! We’re now exploring new ways to use this powder in the health and beauty industries, with exciting products on the horizon.

Grapeseed oil is noted for its high content of polyunsaturated fats, particularly omega-6 fatty acids, which have been associated with heart health benefits. How does Salute Santé! ensure the preservation of these beneficial nutrients during the cold-pressing process?

Linoleic acid has been shown to be highly beneficial for heart health. Grapeseed oil is high in Linoleic Acid, an essential fatty acid that you must eat to get. Several studies have demonstrated that it can effectively raise good cholesterol (HDL) and lower bad cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides—all without requiring any lifestyle changes. Early research, published in prestigious journals like Atherosclerosis and the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, found that consuming just two tablespoons of grapeseed oil daily could increase HDL by nearly 14% and reduce LDL by about 13%. These changes translate to a more than 50% reduction in heart disease risk within just three weeks—results unmatched by any drug on the market.

So, how do we ensure our grapeseed oil is both clean and nutritionally superior? By using a cold-pressing method, we preserve the oil’s natural nutrients. Unlike conventionally extracted grapeseed oils, which undergo solvent extraction, high heat, and chemical refining, our oil is cold pressed at 8,000 pounds of pressure. It’s then packaged in specialized containers—steel cans, glass bottles, and recycled PET—that block out light and oxygen, preserving freshness and guaranteeing a 24-month shelf life.

Compared to other fruit oils like avocado and olive oil, cold-pressed grapeseed oil has significant advantages. It contains about half the saturated fat of olive oil and ten times less than avocado oil, making it an ideal choice for heart health. Doctors and nutritionists often recommend minimizing saturated fat intake, especially for those with high cholesterol, which is where our oil stands out.

Another key benefit is its high smoke point—around 485°F. This means it remains stable even at high temperatures, preventing the formation of harmful trans fats. Many processed foods contain hidden trans fats under misleading labels, making it difficult for consumers to avoid them. With grapeseed oil, you get a naturally trans-fat-free option that’s perfect for a heart-healthy diet.

And yes, you can absolutely cook with grapeseed oil! It’s versatile enough for salads, sautéing, searing, and even deep-frying. Unlike olive oil, which solidifies in the refrigerator due to its higher saturated fat content, our cold-pressed grapeseed oil remains liquid, ensuring a smooth, consistent texture. This is a game-changer for chefs, especially when making salad dressings, French dressings, or delicate sauces like tarragon sauce. It stays perfect every time, whether at room temperature or straight from the fridge.

How does Salute Santé! educate consumers and chefs about the unique culinary applications of grapeseed oil compared to other oils?

That’s a great question, and I really hope this information reaches more people so they can understand the importance of choosing the right fats in their diet. Choosing cold-pressed grapeseed oil is a step in the right direction.

We’ve worked hard to spread awareness, attending trade shows and being an active member of the Specialty Food Association (SFA). We were incredibly honored to win the Gold Sofi Award for our cold-pressed grapeseed oil—an achievement we’re so proud of. In the food industry, the Sofi is like the Oscars, and winning gold really sets us apart. Buyers at these shows look for award-winning brands, and this recognition has helped us stand out.

Another huge honor was being featured on Oprah’s Favorite Things—not once, but three times! She personally selected our oil, loves cooking with it, and even featured us on Good Morning America. That kind of endorsement was an amazing moment for us.

Of course, the biggest challenge is continuing to educate consumers about the health benefits of our oil. Right now, there’s a lot of fear-mongering around seed oils, and it’s important to differentiate ourselves. We are not just another seed oil—we are a fruit oil. No one plants grapes specifically for grapeseed oil, and our process is completely upcycled from the wine industry. That means no additional fertilizer, no extra water, and no extra land use. Most importantly, we’re not made from genetically modified seed crops. Many of those mass-produced seed oils are grown for quantity, not quality. They’re often solvent-extracted, chemically refined, and altered in ways the human body struggles to process.

With our cold-pressed method, we’re keeping things as pure and natural as possible—ensuring a high-quality oil that supports both health and sustainability.

Salute Santé! offers infused grapeseed oils with flavors like roasted garlic, lemon, and white truffle. What inspired the development of these infused oils, and how do they enhance the culinary experience for both home cooks and professional chefs?

Some of the best chefs in the world use our core product to create their own infused oils. For example, Chef Thomas Keller makes his infused oils using them to finish his dishes beautifully. However, for the everyday consumer, making infused oils at home can be tricky—and even dangerous.

Many people think they can simply put garlic into oil and leave it on the windowsill, but this can actually lead to bacterial growth, including botulism, which is extremely dangerous. That’s why we’ve developed a process to create safe, delicious infused oils. Our lineup includes roasted garlic, basil, chili, rosemary, black truffle, white truffle, and more—all shelf-stable and ready to use. And because the oil base is light tasting grapeseed oil, unlike olive oil, the herbs do not compete with the flavor so you get a full burst of lemon, or roasted garlic or the other infusion herbs.

These oils make life easier for both home cooks and professional chefs. In today’s fast-paced kitchens, chefs don’t always have the time or staff to prepare their own infused oils from scratch. Our oils offer a convenient way to add bold flavors to dishes—whether it’s a simple drizzle of white truffle oil in the spring or black truffle oil in the winter for a deeper, earthier note.

One of our favorite success stories happened in New York, where one of Chef Jean-Georges’ restaurants used our truffle oil on their pizza. That pizza ended up on the cover of Gotham Magazine as one of the best pizzas in New York! It’s moments like these that show how a high-quality finishing oil can transform a dish from great to unforgettable.

How does Salute Santé! address the growing interest in grapeseed oil for skin and hair care, and are there any plans to expand into personal care products?

I’m very excited to share that we’re expanding into skincare! Grapeseed oil has been valued for centuries—dating all the way back to biblical times—for its incredible benefits, especially for the skin. Since our skin is the body's largest organ, I believe that whatever we put on it should be just as clean and natural as what we eat.

That’s why I’m launching Uva, a new skincare line crafted from cold-pressed, unfiltered grapeseed oil. We carefully extract and bottle it in UV-filtered glass to preserve its potency. It’s naturally packed with powerful antioxidants like proanthocyanidins, catechins, and vitamin E, which help neutralize free radicals, slow down cell aging, and rejuvenate the skin. Whether you apply it in the morning or before bed, you’ll notice a visible difference within weeks!

But I didn’t stop there! I’ve also developed a grapeseed powder, made by milling the pressed seeds under 8,000 pounds of pressure. This powder is perfect for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical use, offering an ultra-concentrated source of antioxidants, fiber, and vitamin E. Our lab tests show an astonishing ORAC (antioxidant capacity) value of 77,000—compared to just 5,000–6,000 for blueberries or green apples. That makes it one of the most powerful superfoods available!

Whether you’re using grapeseed oil internally or externally, my goal is to make it delicious, healthy, and easy! My Salute Santé! Grapeseed Oil comes in both small and large bottles, ensuring top quality for both cooking and skincare.

You won’t typically find my products in big-box supermarkets—I prefer a direct-to-consumer approach to guarantee the best quality and price. You can find me at grapeseedoil.com, on Amazon, or through my exclusive Oil Club subscription. This way, I can stay connected with my customers and continue my passion for bringing grapeseed-based wellness to as many people as possible!

If you would like to find out more about Salute Santé!, please visit https://grapeseedoil.com/