Production Process of Coconut Flour and Virgin Coconut Oil
August 13, 2008 by Leo 9,402 Views
Coconut flour refers to the screened food-grade product obtained after drying, expelling and/or extracting most of the oil or milk from sound coconut meat. The meat is either pared or unpared. It is sub-classified according to its fat content (low, medium and high), protein content (high protein) and fiber content (high fiber).
Another co-product is Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) which is the natural oil obtained from fresh, mature kernel of the coconut by mechanical extraction.
Manufacturing Process
The manufacturing of virgin coconut oil and flour involves two processing methods either by the:
1) Dry process which involves drying of grinded coconut meat, oil extraction and pulverizing the meal. The process produces a high protein coconut flour (33%) which can be used as wheat substitute.
The advantages of the this process is the high oil recovery at 88% based on the oil content of the meat (65%) or 58% of the dried granulated meat and good quality of the oil with a free fatty acid content of 0.1%. The dry process also produces high protein flour which can be used in making pan de sal and other baked products.
2) Wet process wherein the meat is extracted with milk, drying of the residue and grinding to produce the flour.
In the wet process, almost 52% of the available oil in the fresh meat is recovered. To optimize the oil extraction efficiency of the wet process PCA developed a technology to further extract the oil from the meal after milk extraction. The meal or residue that remains still contains a lot of oil – 35-48% fat content in which 38% colorless oil is recovered and 40% coco flour is obtained as a by-product.
Instead of selling the residue as feeds this can be further processed to produce two high-value products, VCO and flour. The coconut flour is high in fiber content – 60% dietary fiber which can be used as a functional ingredient in the lowering of glycemic index and serum cholesterol levels.
The technology is applicable at small to medium scale level (5,000-10,000 nuts/day). The chart below summarizes the production flow of the coconut flour and VCO.
The equipment used are locally available and the main equipment for defatting coconut meat can be used for both fresh meat and residue for coco oil and flour production. However, some adjustments are needed in the operating parameters to meet the required quality of the products.
The economic viability of these processes is enhanced by the fact that two high value products are produced from a single raw material, namely, virgin oil and coconut flour. The high quality natural colorless oil can be used as a base oil in aromatheraphy products and as food supplement to provide instant energy to the body.
The technology on coconut flour and virgin coconut oil production from coconut residue was developed by PCA and the inventors Dina Masa and Divina Bawalan which bagged Second Prize, Creative Research Category during the National Inventors Week in 1998. SODACO Agricultural Corporation commercialized the technology through a technology transfer agreement (non-exclusive) with PCA.
Quality characteristics of VCO produced from the PCA developed process:
- Moisture content: 0.08-0.13 %
- Free fatty acids (as lauric acid): 0.01-0.09 %Color Colorless
- Peroxide value: 0-2.0 meq/kg oil
The shelf-life of the oil is more than one year.
The summary of the two processing options are shown in the following table:
| Processing Options | Product Characteristics | Yield/Recovery | Process Requirement |
| a. Fresh-dry Process |
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| b. Wet-dry process (patent pending) |
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Classification of Coconut Flour
- Whole full fat coconut flour: Coconut flour prepared from unpared dehydrated and edible coconut kernels by pre-pressing and solvent extraction.
- Coconut flour from pared: Coconut flour prepared from pared, coconut dehydrated and edible coconut kernel.
- Defatted coconut flour/Food: Coconut flour obtained from food-grade grade copra meal or copra that has been defatted by solvent/mechanical extraction. The resulting flour is brownish in color. Sub-classification:
- a. low fat Coconut flour with 10-15% fat
- b. medium fat Coconut flour with 16-25% fat
- c. high fat Coconut flour with 25-48% fat
- Low-fat, high-fiber coconut: Coconut flour from finely ground coconut flour residue “sapal”. The fat content of the resulting flour range from 10-15% and has a total dietary fiber content of more than 60%.
- High-protein, high-fiber: Coconut flour prepared from dehydrated finely ground coconut meat.
- Paring flour: Coconut flour prepared from the paring or the testa of the coconut.
- Copra meal: Coconut meat obtained after extracting oil for granulated copra.
Proximate Composition of Coconut Flour
| From Fresh-Dry Process (Peter Paul Coconut Flour) |
From Wet-dry Process (SODACO Coconut Flour) |
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Properties of Coconut Flour
- Coconut flour has a cream color and is less whiter than all-purpose flour.
- Slightly nutty odor. It has less coconut flavor (almost bland taste) due to reduced fat content.
- Coconut flour and Australian oat are bulkier and will occupy more space per unit volume than banana, all-purpose, hi-maize, Vitacel, and Quaker oat flours.
- Coconut flour has a shelf-life of six months at room temperature Polyethylene plus kraft/chipboard/foil (metallized) and polyenthylene alone are suitable packaging materials.
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2009 · All Rights Reversed ·
September 25, 2009
Greetings from Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (”CNMI”)!
I am in the process of establishing the first CNMI’s coconut processing plant and actively looking for quality and affordably coconut oil extraction machines and related equipment for my facility. I plan to process between 3,000 to 5,000 pieces of coconuts per day in a 6 to 8 hour day.
I am interested in producing Virgin Coconut Oil, cooking oil, value-added products (soap, shampoo, lotion, etc), coco-pastries, and eventually bio-fuel. Further, I want to utilize the coconut husk (fiber or coco-coir & coco-peat) and coconut water for vinegar. In addition, I am also interested in receiving any information associated with coconut processing activities, including 250ml plastic bottles, other containers, labeling, and related resources.
Do you have equipment and machineries for Coconut Husk Remover (dehusking), Coconut Shell Remover (de-sheller), Coconut Paring (peeler), Coconut Grinder, Coconut Milk Extractor, Copra Oil Extractor, and related equipment? If you do, can you please forward your Catalog with equipment description, pricing, and related information at your earliest convenience?
I also need information on shipping & handling to the Port of Saipan, payment terms, delivery schedule, equipment commissioning, repairs & maintenance issues, warranty, and related information.
Your attention to this matter is greatly appreciated. If you need more information, please feel free to contact me at your convenience. In the meantime, I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Edward C. DeLeon Guerrero
President
Marianas Pacific Coconut Company, LLC
P.O. Box 503771
Saipan, MP 96950
Tel/Fax: 1-670-233-7342
Mobile: 1-670-287-0549
Email: cornerstone_development@yahoo.com
hello!po, magangandang hapon po.gusto ko po malaman kung ang coconut sapal po ba pwde po bang e process ng coconut flour manually kc ung sis ko nagtitinda ng veco at ibang kakanin den sayang ung sapal kng itapon lng.pls turuan mo ako step by step kung paano gawin laking tulong po sa amin to for extra income tnx & God bless u
I’d like to learn more how to bake using coconut flour would you know a program that will teach someone like me(i know many parents out there would want this too, who has a special child). My child likes to eat bread and coconut flour is what he may take as per doctor encouraging us to try the Gluten Free Casein Free diet, it means no dry yeast too. Pls help us. God bless you! Thanks.
Hello, i would like to have your permission on using this info’s about the process making of the coconut oil for our thesis project and i would like to know if it is eco-friendly? and why? it is because our theme is Education for peace and care for the earth. and can you give me some eco-friendly titles?? i really need it.. thanks! :D you can email me or pm me: paltao_rhea@yahoo.com
@rhea, sure no problem.
Please send me info on how can I avail myself to produce coconut flour and how much I needed to start with. Thank you. God bless the Philippines
i need to know about the industrial production of coconut oil. please i need a help.
Hi
Am looking for a business partner whose a specialist in virgin oil(coconut) production and cocopeat who is willing to sacrifice his/her time in the Pacific Region…
Kind Regards.
I happen to be in virgin coconut oil naicas81 at hotmail dot com
..please send me the complete process of VCO Production. It is helpful for the making of business plan. Thank you!!
hi everyone.im looking for a dried copra.im from bulacan and i prefer to have a direct supplier from laguna,batangas,quezon and bicol.im a fishmeal supplier and im planning to buy dried copra grind it and also extract coco oil.god bless!
hello,
gumagamit ka ba ng copra cake sa fishmeal mo,kase marami ako d2. pati copra d2 ako sa quezon.pwede ko bang malaman ang address mo at cell.no.
ito ang number ko
0916 284 12 34
Hi Leo! Im a college student here in the Philippines and i would like ask your permission to use the process and information you have shared in this site as an entry to a business plan competition. Please email me your reply. Thanks! :)
@Glenn, no problem, get all the copies you want, it’s free!
What kind of pulverizer do you use to make coconut flour, hammer mill or disk mill? I have tried food processor for sample-test, but the result is too coarse.
@john, for further information and professional advice, please contact Philippine Coconut Authority on their listed numbers.
Thank you for the recipe you shared with poeple.I would like to know more about the the usage of this technology and all other equipment needed for the production of coconut flour & virgin oil. Hope to hear from you soon.
Thank you
John
Very interested to know, what process of making Coconut Flour,, also do you have any reciepe for bread baking using this flour..
Gentlemen:
I am very much impress on the usage of this coconut flour , this might be one of the solution to lower the cost of bread , or pandesal…. I hope we will be educate more about this technology so that we can initiate for our livelihood and for helping the common tao for their daily food supply.How can we avail to know more in this technology and about the equiptment needed for the production of coconut floor….. hope to hear from you soon….