96 



PHILIPPINE RESINS, GUMS, AND OILS 



made it even more advisable to express the oil near the source 

 of coconut production. The result of these various conditions 

 has been the establishment of a considerable number of oil mills 

 in the Philippines. The increase in the coconut-oil business in 

 the Philippines is shown very clearly in Table 8, w^hich gives the 

 exports of copra and coconut oil for the years 1913 to 1918. 



Table 8. — Amouyit and value of copra and coconut oil exported from the 

 Philippines from 1913 to 1918. 



In order to produce high-grade coconut oil, suitable for edible 

 purposes, only ripe nuts should be used, and the copra should be 

 dried properly. These two important points can hardly be over- 

 emphasized. 



Ripe coconuts give a much greater yield of copra and coconut 

 oil than green nuts. Coconuts are sometimes, carelessly or in- 

 tentionally, cut from the tree before they are fully ripe, causing 

 considerable financial loss. Concerning the use of green nuts, 

 Walker,t who has made extensive investigations on copra and 

 coconut oil, states : 



* * * The percentage of anhydrous copra in the meat of the green 

 fruit is 33.7; it rises to 50.1 in that of the "fairly ripe" nuts and increases 

 to 53.3 in those marked "dead ripe." * * * Only thoroughly ripe nuts 

 (the husks of which have begun to turn brown) should be used, and it is 

 often advisable to allow the latter to stand in a dry place for a few weeks 

 before they are opened. * * * 



Walker also says that there appears to be a slight increase 

 in the proportion of meat, copra, and oil in nuts which have 

 been stored, up to a maximum of three months after cutting; 



t Walker, H. S., The coconut and its relation to the production of coconut 

 oil. Philippine Journal of Science, Volume 1 (1906), page 71. 



Walker, H. S., The keeping qualities and causes of rancidity in coconut 

 oil. Philippine Journal of Science, Volume 1 (1906), page 140. 



Walker, H. S., Notes on the sprouting coconut, on copra, and on coconut 

 oil. Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Volume 3 (1908), page 126. 



