I apologise for the quality of this image, but there I was in the local supermarket with only a phone. It shows a shrink-wrapped, cut and trimmed drinking coconut, complete with a straw and instructions for how to make a hole and insert the straw. I was astounded. So astounded that I didn’t register any of the details, like how much these go for, where they are coming from or whether anyone was buying them. If there are any left next time I’ll try to find out. Or maybe this is old news to someone, either in coconut-growing or coconut-drinking country.
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Mike Foale found it in Kerala prior to 2001 where they were preparing and marketing a product known as Snowball which conforms closely to yours. It is pictured on page 120 of Mike’s book “The Coconut Odyssey” and can be seen at http://www.aciar.gov.au/publication/MN101
A similar product from Mexico turned up in UK last year, under the name “Yoconut” http://www.yoconut.com/what.html
I was happy to see this ‘ready to drink coconut’.
In fact, In India, there are a few units that produce this – what is called as minimally processed tender coconut. Of course, countries like Philippines & Thailand have gone very far in the value addition.
I’m a farm journalist. We are running a farm magazine in vernacular in India since 20 years. We have published stories on this. If you are interested, I can send you photos.
Maybe you can exchange whatever info you have. In which country this product was being sold etc etc.
Regards
Shree Padre
This was on sale in Italy. It would be interesting to know a little more about the machinery for producing these. Is it very captial intensive? Or is this something that could be done on a village scale?