Abstract: The present invention is directed to a process for the production of an improved purified short fiber cellulose suitable for human consumption from agricultural by-product materials, such as legume hulls, preferably soybean hulls. The legume hulls are comminuted into a particulate feed which is admixed with water to form a slurry. The slurried particulate legume hulls are oxidized, hydrolyzed and extracted with a caustic oxidizing agent utilizing an initial pH of about 12 to effect solubilization of the greater portion of non-cellulose material in the feed. A solid cellulose containing material is thereafter removed from the slurry, for example, by filtration or centrifugation. The recovered solid mass is slurried in water and the resulting slurry if pH adjusted to about 7 by the addition of phosphoric acid. The resulting suspension is agitated and H.sub.2 O.sub.2 is added, and the mixture is heated to promote bleaching and breakdown of the non-cellulose components.