PHL to start exporting coconut water to US

The Philippines will start exporting coconut water to the United States by January 2011, an official of the United Coconut Associations of the Philippines Inc. (UCAP) said on Wednesday. "If everything turns out alright, the joint venture company may start shipping anytime in January next year," UCAP executive director Yvonne Agustin told reporters. Peter Paul Coconut Water Corp., in an export tie up with Pepsi Cola, was given incentives for the venture by the Board of Investments. The joint venture already has a P79-million coconut juice processing plant on a leased 2,500-sqm area in Candelaria, Quezon. The ready-to-drink juice will be sold in 1-liter tetra packs, using technology from Swedish firm Alfa Laval Tetra Pak. The plant in Quezon has a processing capacity of 21.25 million liters a year, according to the Board of Investments. Consumers of coconut water will include beverage companies and processors, households, supermarkets and distributors. The joint venture company is expected to ship 100 percent of its output to the US. Coconut juice as a sports drink Agustin said there has been increasing interest for coconut water as a sports drink. "Both Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola have joined the bandwagon and have acquired coconut water companies or controlling stakes to increase exposure in this growing non-carbonated drink," she said. Based on the US Department of Agriculture's National Nutrient Database, coconut water contains vitamins (B6, folate, thiamin, niacin, pantothenic acid) and minerals (selenium, manganese, copper, zinc, potassium, chlorides, calcium, and magnesium). Agustin said that virgin coconut oil exporter Prosource is also venturing into coconut water production. The company is marketing powdered coconut juice that can be dissolved in water. — KBK/VS, GMANews.TV