Dried Coconut

History

The origins of this fruit tree are really remote and controversial since its spread phases, migration routes, age and place of origin cannot be determined with certainty. Palm trees are among the oldest plant organisms on the planet and flourished millions of years before humans appeared on Earth. The oldest fossils containing these palm trees date back to the Eocene, between 58 and 27 million years ago, and have been found in India and Australia. However, even older palm-like fossils have been found on the American continent. How the coconut palm, now found throughout the tropics, originated and spread, is a matter of controversy, and still very much a mystery. It was the Polynesians in their peregrinations across the Pacific Islands who contributed to the spread of this plant, taking it with them in their canoes. Coconuts were real natural canteens that could hold liquids and keep food fresh, and which could easily be recovered if they slipped overboard as they float. 

During the Middle Ages, the Arab trade created a significant network within the Indian Ocean and promoted the spread of coconut palms. In the seventeenth century, European settlers contributed to its spread from the Indian region to West Africa and the west coast of America. The ancient Greeks were also familiar with this tree. Indeed, Apollonius of Tiana (1st century CE) writes that coconut palms grew in abundance in the fertile plain of the Ganges. In 1271 Marco Polo, the Venetian merchant who came to China along the 'silk road', mentions the coconut palm in his book 'Il Milione’ (The Million), saying that it flourished in large numbers in various parts of India. Europeans discovered the coconut after the discovery of America, when the Portuguese and the Spanish began to explore the western coasts of Central and South America. However, it was only in 1510 that the description by an Italian traveller and naturalist, Ludovico de Varthema, revealed not only what the fruit, the coconut itself, looked like, but also the appearance of the plant which produced it.

The settlers also began to grow this fruit plant on the eastern coasts of America in 1525. In 1577 Sir Francis Drake, one of the most prestigious English Admirals of the Elizabethan era, discovered coconut palms in the Atlantic Ocean, in the Cape Verde Islands. For the first time, he noted in his logbook that inside the coconut fruit was 'a very white substance, no less good or sweet than almond milk'. The plant is believed to be native to Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines) and the islands between the Indian and the Pacific Oceans. 

Source: 

Nutspaper, 2/2018 

Properties

According to our analyses, 100 g coconut contain:

• Biotin (9.2 µg - 18% of NRV)
• Magnesium (71.5 mg - 19% of NRV)
• Phosphorus (160 mg - 23% of NRV)
• Iron (3.6 mg - 26% of NRV)
• Zinc (2.8 mg - 28% of NRV)
• Potassium (568 mg - 28% of NRV)
• Selenium (31 µg - 56% of NRV)
• Copper (1.1 mg — 110% of NRV)
• Manganese (2.2 mg - 110% of NRV)
• Fibre (11 g)

Dose recommendations

Each package of 1kg of dried coconut contains about 32 portions of 30 g that provide:

• 33% of the Nutrient Reference Value of Manganese;
• 32% of the Nutrient Reference Value of Copper;
• 17% of the Nutrient Reference Value of selenium.

Individual needs will vary according to age, gender, weight and physical activity. A varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle are the basis of your well-being.

Affordable price

Affordable price means to us offering our clients dried coconut with no added sugar - containing only natural sugar - that everybody can enjoy. 

We want, on the one hand, to place the proper value on raw materials in order to obtain a quality product by paying our farmers a fair price; on the other hand we want to fulfil your needs when it comes to pricing. 

We establish fair long-term relationships with our producers to avoid race-to-the-bottom pricing and that are based on trust as part of our efforts to offer you the finest and most natural product. 

Not only that: by choosing large packs of dried coconut, you are also contributing to the reduction in the use of plastic. 

Storage

You can store dried coconut in cool, dry places away from sources of heat and moisture. Here are 4 useful tips: 

• The best way to store dried coconut is in a refrigerated environment. Nuturally dried coconut with no added sugar - containing only natural sugar - can also be stored at room temperature during the winter season given the low temperatures. During summer, however, it is advisable to store the product in the refrigerator or in the coolest possible environment, as increased temperatures could encourage decay. 
• The ideal container for the storage of dried coconut is glass. Indeed, because of its composition it is impervious to chemical agents and gases, and, as it has excellent insulation properties, it holds the initial temperature for longer than other materials. It is even better if the glass is coloured: using coloured glass blocks the entry of certain wavelengths of light (including ultraviolet), and thus certain nutritional and organoleptic characteristics remain unaltered.  
• The type of closure of the container is also important as an airtight cap ensures that the food is protected from excessive contact with oxygen that can lead to lipid oxidation and encourage the growth of aerobic bacteria. 
• The best kind of storage environment is one which is well ventilated because ventilating the premises keeps internal humidity under control, which otherwise could escape from windows, thereby guaranteeing the right balance to lessen the onset of mould.