The allergen is not present in the castor oil itself. In popular culture
In the 1922 film, Nanook of the North, Nanook gives one of his sons a spoonful of castor oil, and he enjoys it. In the 1934 Silly Symphony short "The Wise Little Hen", Donald Duck and Peter Pig pretend to have bellyaches to get out of helping the titular hen plant and harvest corn. When she grows wise to their ruse, she invites the two over for dinner and, rather than corn, gives them a bottle of castor oil for their "bellyaches". In the 1939 film The Great Man Votes, an early scene establishes the loving relationship between the single father played by John Barrymore and his two young children. “Socrates and his hemlock!” Pop declares as he downs the cup of coffee laced with a spoonful of castor oil prepared by his daughter (12-year-old Virginia Weidler), following doctors orders. In the 1943 Tom and Jerry cartoon short "Baby Puss", Tom Cat, dressed as a baby, is given castor oil by a child as a punishment. In the 1949 MGM Tex Avery cartoon The House of Tomorrow, the house is shown to have individual medicine cabinets for each member of the family, with “Junior’s” containing a large bottle of castor oil and a spoon. In the novel It Cant Happen Here, castor oil is used by American fascist paramilitaries in a reference to the Mussolini regime.
It was used almost universally in rotary-engined Allied aircraft in World War I. Germany had to make do with inferior ersatz oil for its rotary engines, which resulted in poor reliability.The methanol-fueled, two-cycle, glow-plug engines used for aeromodelling, since their adoption by model airplane hobbyists in the 1940s, have used varying percentages of castor oil as lubricants. It is highly resistant to degradation when the engine has its fuel-air mixture leaned for maximum engine speed. Gummy residues can still be a problem for aeromodelling powerplants lubricated with castor oil, however, usually requiring eventual replacement of ball bearings when the residue accumulates within the engines bearing races. One British manufacturer of sleeve-valved four-cycle model engines has stated the "varnish" created by using castor oil in small percentages can improve the pneumatic seal of the sleeve valve, improving such an engines performance over time. Turkey red oil
Turkey red oil, also called sulphonated (or sulfated) castor oil, is made by adding sulfuric acid to vegetable oils, most notably castor oil. It was the first synthetic detergent after ordinary soap. It is used in formulating lubricants, softeners, and dyeing assistants. Biodiesel
Castor oil, like currently less expensive vegetable oils, can be used as feedstock in the production of biodiesel. The resulting fuel is superior for cold winters, because of its exceptionally low cloud point and pour point.Initiatives to grow more castor for energy production, in preference to other oil crops, are motivated by social considerations. Tropical subsistence farmers would gain a cash crop.