Not AvailableThe coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) nick-named as Kalpa vriksha, is a multipurpose palm grown widely in humid tropics, providing nutritious food and refreshing drink, oil for edible and non-edible uses, fibre, shell for fuel and industrial uses, timber and a variety of miscellaneous products for domestic and industrial uses. Its crop is of greater significance in generating employment, alleviating poverty and enhancing income to rural areas. It provides livelihood for 10 million people, contributing 6 per cent to the national vegetable oil pool.Not Availabl

5 Jayasekhar

B Augustine Jerard

P Chowdappa

V Niral

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V Niral, B Augustine Jerard, 5 Jayasekhar and P Chowdappa Tender coconuts for nutritional security The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) nick-named as Kalpa vriksha, is a multipurpose palm grown widely in humid tropics, providing nutritious food and refreshing drink, oil for edible and non-edible uses, fibre, shell for fuel and industrial uses, timber and a variety of miscellaneous products for domestic and industrial uses. Its crop is of greater significance in generating employment, alleviating poverty and enhancing income to rural areas. It provides livelihood for 10 million people, contributing 6 per cent to the national vegetable oil pool. COCONUT is grown predominantly in tropical regions in 12.47 million ha worldwide with an annual production of 72,758 million nuts. Nine million ha (about 75 per cent of the total area) is confined to Indonesia, the Philippines and India. In India, it is grown in 2.07 million ha with an annual production of 23,351 million nuts. In India, coconut is cultivated in 18 states and 3 union territories. Kerala, Tamil N adu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh account for 90% of the total coconut cultivation in India. The cultivation of coconut has also spread to non-traditional states, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, West Bengal and North-Eastern states. Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar also have coconut as the major crop. COCONUTS FOR NUTRITIONAL SECURITY Coconut Types In coconut, palms are commonly categorized into two categories, ta Ils and dwarfs, based on th e plant habit. The tall palms are most commonly cultivated for commercial production in coconut-growing regions worldwide. Dwarf palms have gained importance in recent years due to tender nut qualities and resistance to certain diseases. The general features of tall and dwarf are listed in Table 1. Table 1 	 General characteristics of tall and dwarf coconut varieties Kalpa Jyothi Trait Tall 	 Dwarf Stem circumference Sturdy with bole Thin without bole at base at base Initiation of flowering Late (5-7 years) Early (3-4 years) Mode of pollination Predominantly Predominantly self cross-pollinated pollinated Colour of fruits Generally mixtures Either pure green, Chandrosankaro and petioles of green and brown yellow, red (orange) or brown Arrangement of leaf Widely spaced Closely spaced scars on the trunk Fruit size Very small to very big Small to medium Phenotypic variation Within cultivar High Low Between cultivars High High Leaf and bunch Very strong Fragile attachment Root distribution Generally more Less dense and few dense and plentiful Productive life span About 60 years About 40 yearsChandralaksha 	 CARl Cl Annapoorna November-December 2014 25 Table 2 Improved coconut varieties for copra and tender nut Variety Important traits Nut yield Tender nut Copra yield Recommended for (yield/ha/year) water (ml/nut) (tonnes/ha/year) Tall Kera Chandra High yield 19,470 450 3.86 Kerala, Karnataka, Kankan region, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal Kalpa Pratibha High yield 16,107 448 4.12 Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra Kalpa Haritha Green fruits, Less 20,886 440 3 .70 Kerala, Karnataka eriophyid mite damage Kalyani Coconut 1 High yield 14,160 274 3.84 West Bengal Dwarf/ semi-tall Kalparaksha Semi-tall, High yield, 17,748 290 3.34 Kerala green fruits Kera Madhura Semi-tall, high yield 24,480 4.80 Kerala Gouthami Ganga Dwarf, Green fruits 11,505 1.8 Andhra Pradesh Kalpasree Dwarf, green fruits 15,930 240 1.54 Kerala CARI-C 1 (Annapurna) Dwarf, high copra 9,133 470 2 .20 Andaman and Nicobar Islands content, green fruits Table 3 Coconut hybrids for copra and tender nut Hybrid variety Source population Important Nut yield Vol. of tender Copra yield Area of parents traits (yield/ha/year) nut water (ml/nut) (tonnes/ha) recommended Chandra Sankara COD x WCT High yield 20532 347 4 .27 Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu Chandra Laksha LCT x COD High yield , 19293 339 3.76 Kerala, Karnataka drought tolerant Kalpa Samrudhi MYD x WCT 	 Drought tolerant, 20744 346 4 .3 5 Kerala, Asom higher nutrient use efficiency Kalpa Sankara MYD x TPT 	 High yield 29227 368 6.28 Kerala, Karnataka Table 4 Dwarf varieties for tender nut and ornamental purpose Variety Important traits Nut yield Vol. of tender Copra yield Recommended for (yield/ha/ nut water (tonnes/ha)@ year)@ (ml/nut) Dwarf/ Semi tall Chowghat Orange fruits, less eriophyid 19824 351 2.78 All coconut growing regions Orange Dwarf mite damage Kalpa Jyathi Yellow fruits 21771 380 4.07 Kerala , Karnataka, Assam Kalpa Surya Orange fruits 9133 400 2.20 Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu CARI-C2 (Surya) Ornamental purpose, orange fruits 24072 155 1.77 Andaman and Nicobar Islands CARI-C3 (Omkar) Ornamental purpose, yellow fruits 16373 346 1.67 Andaman and Nicobar Islands CARI-C4 (Chandan) Ornamental purpose, orange fruits 11505 368 l.80 Andaman and Nicabar Islands Till today, 15 hybrids and 27 varieties have been developed and released for commercial cultivation. Coconut Water The tender coconut water serves as a mineral drink with therapeutic value that help in regaining the vitality of human body. It has become popular as an emerging, natural and healthy product. The water of tender coconut fruit, technically the liquid endosperm of coconut fruit, is referred to as tender nut water. It is considered as a natural and refreshing health drink. "It is a natural isotonic beverage with the same level of electrolytic balance as we have in our blood. It is the fluid of life, so to speak," says Mr Morton Satin, Chief of FAO . Tender coconut water increases semen levels, promotes digestion and clears the urinary path. Tender coconut water is readily accepted by human body and hence, this has been used as an intra-veinal fluid (IV fluid ) during the exigencies of World War II. The major chemical constituents of coconut water are sugars and minerals, followed by minor amounts of nitrogenous compounds (proteins / amino acids). The quantity and composition of tender nut water changes with variety, agro-ecological conditions, age of palm as well as progress of nut maturity. In general, tender nut water content reduces during nut maturation, coupled with reducing potassium content and increasing sodium content. Overall, seven month old coconut is harvested as tender nuts which contain sugar and sodium­potassium content. Indian Horticulture 26 Kalpa Haritha Bunch Kalpa Sreshta Kalpa Surya Bunch Table 5 Biochemical constituents of tender nut water in coconut tender nut varieties Variety Water (ml) TSS (OBrix) Total sugars Free amino acids Potassium Sodium (g/IOO ml) (mg/l00 ml) (ppm) (ppm) Tall Kera Chandra 450 5.86 1.3 2273 24 Kalpa Pratibha 448 5.5 1.1 2150 21.7 Kalpa Haritha 440 5.85 2100 17.5 Dwarf/Semi-tall Chowghat Orange Dwarf 351 70 1.8 2003 20 Kalpa Jyothi 380 6.2 1.7 1998 36 Kalpa Surya 400 4.1 1.8 2142 35 Kalparaksha 290 4.92 2100 19.5 Kalpasree 240 4.8 2150 22.4 CARI-C 1 (Annapurna) 470 5.4 2.52 1.48 2216 71 CARI-C2 (Surya) 154 6.3 2.27 1.52 2279 69 CARI-C3 (Omkar) 117 5.7 2.32 1.44 2133 62 CARI-C4 (Chandan) 198 4.9 2.38 1.44 2651 70 Hybrid Chandra Sankara 347 6.58 5.99 1.73 2193 23.77 Chandra Laksha 339 6.51 5.72 1.76 2226 23 .83 Kalpa Samrudhi 346 6.0 4.17 2.08 2370 35.1 Ka I pa Sreshta 368 5.89 5.81 1.34 2081 33.3 Varieties for Tender Nut The quantity and quality of tender coconut water varies across varieties and regions. The quantity of tender coconut water is correlated to the size of coconut fruit and the endosperm cavity. It varies from negligible (Laccadive Mini Micro Tall) to more than 800 ml (San Ramon Tall). The sweetness of water and mineral content also varies. Tender nuts are harvested from the existing talis , due to high demand caused by health benefits of tender coconut water. This resulted in sacrificing the quality of nut water valuable copra and oil. The traits of improved varieties for tender nut/ dual purposes released for cultivation in the country are given in Tables 2, 3, 4 and 5. Nutritive Value The tender coconut water contains both organic and inorganic compounds. Sugars are major constituent of total soluble solids in tender nut water, major sugars being sucrose, sorbitol , glucose and fructose, followed by minor sugars, nam ely, galactose, xylose and mannose . The second major constituents in quantitative terms are minerals , with potassium being the predominant mineral with chlorine, sodium, calcium, sulphur, phosphorus in variable quantities. In addition trace amounts of manganese, aluminium, zinc and copper are found in tender nut water. The protein November-December 2014 fraction of tender coconut water contains amino acids, viz. arginine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, alanine, tyrosine, histidine, cysteine, proline, leucine, lysine, phenyl alanine, and serine. The level s of alanine, arginine, cysteine and serine in tender nut water, are reportedly higher than in cow's milk. Further, vitamins (vitamin C, B complex), enzymes and traces of fat «0.1 %) are also present in the tender nut water. In addition, tender nut water contains organic acids and aroma compounds, which have not yet been fully characterized, and contribute to the taste and flavor of the tender nut water . SUMMARY In India, enterprising farmers in Tamil Nadu, especially in Pollachi and Coimbatore districts, have planted a sizeable coconut plantations with tender nut varieties for meeting the domestic demand are also for exploring avenues for tapping the export market. The trend is picking up in Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal. To enhance the profitability of growers and to avoid market fluctuations, growing tender nut varieties are strongly advocated. For further interaction, please write to: Drs V Niral, B Augustine Jerad, S Jayasekhar and P Chowdappa (Scientists), Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kosaragod 671 124 , Kerala. 27 

Tender coconuts for nutritional security

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Tender coconuts for nutritional security

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