Coconut

The coconut is found along tropical seashores around the world, and in some areas it is cultivated far inland. It provides man with food, drink, fuel oil, and many other products.

There are about 8.5 million acres of coconuts, of which 2.45 million are in the Philippines, 1.59 in India, 1.5 in Indonesia, 1.07 in Ceylon, 0.6 in Malaya, 0.6 in other south sea islands, and 0.7 million acres elsewhere (Minon and Pandalai 1958, Woodruff 1970). Apacible (1968) indicated that there were 4.5 million acres in 1967 as against 2.4 million in 1958. Apacible (1968) also stated that coconut production has increased at the rate of 5 percent a year for the last 50 years. In the United States, coconuts are found in Florida, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. The largest coconut plantation in the United States consists of about 30,000 trees in Key Biscayne, Fla. (Woodruff 1970).