Life in Goa is unimaginable without a coconut. Goans eat
coconut, drink the water and live surrounded by coconut trees. An important
ingredient, the coconut was previously used for almost every meal. Sanjeev
Sardessai, a noted historian, recently informed a group of heritage lovers that
in the olden times, a plate of coconut pieces and jaggery would be kept at the
entrance of the house to be served to the guests. These simple ingredients were
enough to refresh a tired person.
During these summer months, it is common to see coconut
kernel pieces left out to dry in open spaces in the compound of houses,
especially in the villages. Coconuts would be sorted and those that are dried
and don’t make a sound of the water in the nuts are kept aside, broken open and
the dried kernel is extracted. These same kernels are then cut into medium
sized pieces and left to dry for 2-3 days under the hot Sun. To check if it is
dried well enough, the pieces would be tested by snapping it into two pieces.
The next step would be to clean and dry the containers that would be used to
fill the coconut oil. The same oil would last at least a year for the family
till the next summer season. The end of the process would be visiting the local
coconut oil mill and waiting your turn which could take hours for extracting
the oil. However, this traditional method of extracting oil still has the old
world charm.
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Right from consuming it orally to applying it on the skin,
there are various health benefits linked to the humble coconut oil. Former Goa
agricultural officer, Miguel Braganza informs about the different uses of the
coconut oil, “Coconut oil is made up of about saturated fats which is good for
frying chillies, meats and fish, anything that is heated above 100 degrees.
Back in the 90s, there was a hype that was created to blame coconut oil as a
reason for increase in cholesterol. It was a lobby that was formed to promote
palm oil which was later debunked by many scientists. It is advised to consume
a spoonful of coconut oil in the morning which reduces hunger and can control
overeating during the day.”
He further adds, “Right from Maharashtra to Kerala, coconut
oil is used for head massages and better growth of hair. Coconut oil is warmed and
applied for body pain and a stronger remedy for pain would be heating an equal
quantity of kokum butter and coconut oil and applying on the body. It is also
used to soften ear wax. During monsoons, as a remedy for cold, coconut oil
would be applied for the back and chest. New born babies are massaged with
coconut oil which also helps toning their muscles.”
In the month of March, there is a big coconut harvest which
means that the coconuts dry fast. ‘Gud’gudde’ are separated from the heap of
coconuts and they are used for extracting oil. After the monsoons and festivals
like Ganesh Chaturthi and Diwali, some families select the dried coconuts and
extract oil.
A Coconut Workshop will be organised today, April 13 at Sal
Training Hall, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), ICAR-CCARI, Old Goa. It is organised
by ICAR-CCARI, Goa in collaboration with CPCRI Kasargod, Kerala. The workshop
will be held in the presence of HRC Prabhu, senior scientist and head
in-charge, ICAR — KVK, North Goa and Dr Parveen Kumar, director, ICAR-CCARI,
Goa. It will focus on different aspects of the coconut tree including a lecture
on ‘Post harvest technology of coconut’ by Dr MR Manikantan, principal
scientist, ICAR-CPCRI, Kasargod at 11.40 am, a demonstration on machinery at 12
pm, a demonstration of coconut climbing machine at 12.30 pm and a demonstration
of ‘Virgin coconut oil production’ by Sunetra Talaulikar, Subject Matter
Specialist (SMS), Home Science, ICAR — KVK, North Goa at 1 pm.
“This technology has been standardised by CPCRI, ICAR,
Kasargod and popularised in Goa since 2016. A Virgin Coconut oil (VCO) unit has
been set up at KVK North Goa under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) funds
and almost 500 farmers are trained in Goa. Three commercial and one home scale
unit has been set up in Goa. There is a huge potential for production of VCO
and value addition of coconut. Coconut has been identified under One District
One Product (ODOP) for South Goa. KVK North Goa under ICAR-CCARI has put a lot
of efforts to upscale this technology in Goa by giving training with the
support of Dr Parveen Kumar, director, ICAR-CCARI, Goa,” explains Sunetra
Talaulikar.
To elaborate on the different between the traditional
coconut oil and virgin coconut oil, she adds, “VCO is extracted from fresh
coconut meat without chemical processes. It is rich in medium chain fatty
acids, particularly lauric acid and is a treasure trove of minerals, vitamins,
antioxidants and is an excellent nutraceutical. It has about 50 percent lauric
acid, having qualities similar to mother’s milk, thus confirming its
disease-fighting ability. When lauric acid enters human body it gets converted
to Monolaurin, which has the ability to enhance immunity. Several studies have
confirmed that this compound has the ability to kill viruses and numerous other
bacteria. Its antiviral effect has the ability to considerably reduce the viral
load of HIV patients. VCO is not subjected to high temperature, solvents or
refinement procedures and therefore retains the fresh scent and taste of coconuts.
It is rich in vitamin E, is non-greasy, non-staining and is widely used in
soaps, lotion, creams and lip balms. This oil is having medicinal value and
helps in many diseases like thyroid problem, Parkinson’s disease and
Alzheimer’s disease.”
Joseph Vaz of Coco-Goa is taking small but steady steps in
production of virgin coconut oil in Goa. Though he set up the production four
years back, he has been researching about the oil for three years. “I met
Orlando Rodrigues, managing director of Goa State Horticulture Corporation
(GSHC) and he advised me to start in a small way to see how it goes. The
demands for VCO is not that high in the market and you have to change the
mind-set of the people as everyone prefers a cheaper priced oil. There is a
huge process difference between both the oils beginning with the traditional
coconut oil is extracted from dried coconuts while VCO is extracted from fresh
coconuts. VCO is lighter than coconut oil. I have been trained by Dr MR
Manikantan and there is much more research done on VCO compared to coconut
oil,” concludes Joseph.
