Vegetable oil-based hydraulic oil is one of the biodegradable lubricants. With the strengthening of environmental awareness, especially in the context of the increasingly serious pollution of the marine environment by mineral oil used in ships, people are increasingly aware that the pollution of mineral oil-based hydraulic oil to the environment is very serious, and many solutions have been proposed. The use of biodegradable plant-based hydraulic oil instead of traditional mineral oil-based hydraulic oil can fundamentally solve the pollution of marine hydraulic oil to the marine environment. The development of vegetable oil-based hydraulic oil in the world is systematically summarized, including its material composition, physical and chemical properties. By analysing its practical prospect and future development direction, it is concluded that vegetable oil-based hydraulic oil is the most environmentally friendly hydraulic oil in the future shipbuilding, industrial manufacturing and other industries, and it is the development trend of “green shipping” in China in the future.