Use coco for beauty products threatens tropical fruit

With the increased popularity of health and beauty products based on coconut, the demand for this fruit has skyrocketed, and producers may not be able to keep up.

According to the data of the food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the world demand for coconuts is growing 10 percent a year, while the production increases only 2%.

The problem is related to the aging of coconut trees of the main producer countries of this fruit, notably the Philippines, Indonesia or India.

According to Hiroyuki Konoma, representative for the region of Asia and the Pacific of the OAA, the coconut trees used currently in production were planted more than 50 years, which means they have 20 more years beyond their peak production, referred to in the Huffington Post. If it is planted in rich soil, a coconut tree can generate, on average, 75 fruits per year.

According to FAO, India produces about 16 billion coconuts a year, exclusively for home use, and more than €740 million (US $ 2.3 billion) are exported annually from the Philippines to the United States. Despite the high export values, production is still about 8% below the level of demand.

However, despite the massive search, that can even threaten the species, the producers seem to have found a solution. In early November, more than a dozen countries in the Asia-Pacific region gathered in Bangkok to find the best solution to rehabilitate the industry. With certain initiatives of replanting, the industry believes it can relaunch the production "in a few years," said the executive director of the community of Asia-Pacific Scree, Romulo Arancon.

However, the plan is not as simple as planting more Palm trees. A study of the OAA indicates that "will require technical and financial assistance" to increase the production area in Indonesia, while the producers, mostly small farmers, are already looking for ways to increase revenues, which include the use of hybrid seeds.

Retrieve the population of coconut trees is important not only for farmers, who depend on these trees to survive, but also to coast lines, since these trees help prevent coastal erosion. If the rehabilitation of this tree is no longer a concern, the effects can be devastating because of the intense demand it if it makes you feel, underlines the OAA.

Foto:  Chirantan Patnaik / Creative Commons

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