OILS 283 



Kokune butter, also called mangosteen oil, is obtained from 

 the seeds of the mangosteen which yield about 20 per cent, of 

 fat of a white color and not unpleasant flavor. Kokune butter 

 is prepared especially on the west coast of India where it is 

 widely used as a food fat. 



Cohune oil is obtained from nuts of the palm Attalea co- 

 hune, native to Central America, especially Mexico, British 

 Honduras, and Guatemala. The nuts are about the size of 

 nutmegs and contain 40 per cent, of the firm yellow fat. The 

 nuts offer much difficulty in grinding, and suitable machinery 

 for crushing them has not yet been devised. The cohune 

 palm is estimated to occupy nearly 2,000,000 acres in British 

 Honduras, or approximately two-fifths of the total area of the 

 colony. The nuts are borne in large bunches and the yield of 

 each tree is 1,000 to 2,000 nuts per year, or about 200 pounds 

 of nuts. The kernels of the nuts are about i inch in diameter. 

 Occasionally, however, they attain a greater size. The fat 

 obtained from the kernels is solid white, of a crystalline struc- 

 ture, and resembles coconut oil in appearance and smell. The 

 kernels yield about 65 per cent, by weight of fat. 



Coconut oil has long been one of the most important of the 

 vegetable fats, and its importance is increasing constantly with 

 the improvement in methods of refining and purifying it. This 

 oil is discussed in the chapter on coconuts. 



Japan wax is derived from the berries of Rhus succedanea, 

 a sumac bush native of Japan, China, and Tonkin. By pres- 

 sure the berries yield 20 per cent, of a greenish wax. 



The most important refineries for this material are located in 

 Kobi and Osaka. The total production of Japan wax is about 

 2400 tons annually, and of this quantity about 250 tons are 

 exported to Europe and America. 



Mowra fat is produced by Bassia latifolia and B. longifolia 

 which are native nut-bearing trees in India. For the most 

 part the nuts are collected from wild trees but the cultivation 

 of these trees is increasing in recent years. Mowra fat is 



