Brasília, March 17, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Brazil produces 500 million liters of coconut water per year, and about 7% of this total is exported. Other South American countries, such as Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, buy coconut water from Brazil. The United States and some European countries will now become acquainted with our product, too. Tests are already being conducted in the lines of exports to these countries.

According to Embrapa (Brazilian Agricultural Research Company) economist, Manoel Cuenca, the consumption of coconut water in Europe and the United States is still small, because a culture of consuming this product is lacking in these countries. But he wagers that the consumption of coconut water abroad can constitute a large source of foreign exchange for Brazil, "due to the great consumer potential and the elevated per capita income that the European countries and America possess." Cuenca reveals that, whereas consumers in Brazil pay around US$ 0.32 per coconut, the price in the United States can attain US$ 7.00.

For Brazil, fresh coconuts represent a guarantee of jobs and source of income for producers. It is the second largest productive activitiy in the Northeast region, after sugarcane, and employs around 400 thousand people, from the cultivation and harvesting to the distribution of the product.

Coconut water has no contraindications. Bearing this in mind, the Brazilian Pediatrics Society (SBP) will certify the product with the seal of "natural hydration agent," according to its president, Cláudio Leone.

The big advantage of coconut water is that it is a liquid that contains mineral salts, such as sodium and potassium, as well as glucose and proteins, that are already part of the organism's natural components. "In addition, it is a natural product that requires no manipulation or processes of industrialization to be consumed," Leone emphasizes. (DAS)