We really care about what goes into our products at The Coconut Company. We’re not just talking about the product itself. We want to know what’s involved, what a farmer does, and how the whole process works. It matters to our ethics, it matters to you, but we also know it’s fascinating. 

That’s why we recently asked some questions of our partner in The Philippines. Working directly with the Coconut Tappers, the incredible farmers who collect the coconut sap that goes into every splash of coconut vinegar, every squeeze of coconut nectar and every sprinkle of coconut sugar, we felt they were best placed to give us the lowdown.

Here we dive into what we discovered about the process of collecting coconut sap from the flower blossom (or spadix) of the coconut tree. It may leave you in awe, but it’ll certainly leave you sure that from tree to plate, we bring you the good stuff.

Tap, tap, tapping?

First of all, let’s quickly explain how Coconut Tappers get their name. Your first thoughts may conjure up someone mystically tapping on an actual coconut in some near-magical process of judging ripeness. You’d be wrong. Coconut tapping is quite different entirely.

Coconut palms are flowering trees (yes the coconut is kind of a fruit). Coconut tapping refers to the process of collecting the milky white sap from the flower blossom, not the coconut itself. It’s this glorious sap, which is a naturally sweet substance, which makes it ideal for products such as coconut vinegar, coconut nectar, coconut aminos and coconut sugar. 

Yet ‘tapping’ also isn’t akin to the tapping you may think of with Maple trees. Instead, the tap (a hollow tube of bamboo usually) is simply positioned to collect the sap which drips from the flower when a cut is made. Coconut tappers in The Philippines climb their coconut trees each day to collect the sap. Here’s what else we found out.

How often do Coconut Tappers have to climb their trees?

Coconut tapping, or harvesting the sap, is a very hands-on technique – at the top of the tree! The Tappers will tap the trees twice a day when making coconut vinegar and four times a day when making coconut nectar. Each Coconut Tapper has multiple organically growing trees, and our partner factory employs around 30 Coconut Tappers at the moment.

What’s fantastic is how quickly the sap makes it to the processing facility, ready to be transformed into our glorious coconut products. The farmers are all very local to the factory. They can collect the sap and have it with the producers in just ten to fifteen minutes!

Is coconut tapping a new process?

The popularity of coconut products may have boomed over the last decade, but the process of coconut tapping is a traditional method. It’s therefore a long way removed from intensive farming, instead relying on traditional processes.

In the area of The Philippines that you’ll find our partner’s Coconut Tappers, the process has been a notable industry since the 1950s. It did go out of fashion for a few years, when previous sap drinkers turned instead to commercially available drinks. Unfortunately, at that time, the health and nature wonder that is coconut vinegar was eclipsed by chemically-laden vinegars.

It took our partner in The Philippines returning to her home area, following a successful career with the International Finance Corporation and the World Bank Group, to reignite the industry. She took the decision to save the “dying art of vinegar-making from coconut sap and rescue the vanishing breed of tappers from extinction.” We’re very glad she did, as this is where our tasty coconut aminos come from.

Are all types of coconut sap the same?

Coconut sap, like many things, varies. 

Firstly, there are the trees themselves. As our partner explains, their farms use two types of coconut tree – the Laguna Tall (unsurprisingly a taller variety) and a dwarf variety. Both are GMO-free and organically grown. While both trees produce excellent and equal quality sap, the dwarf varieties are, for obvious reasons, easier for the Coconut Tappers to access. Therefore, our products are increasingly being made using dwarf varieties. 

Then there are different grades to the sap itself. This all comes down to Brix content. Brix is the amount of sugar available in the liquid. For making coconut nectar, the sap needs to have a higher Brix value. It’s this sweetness that translates into the gooey stickiness of a syrup. For vinegar-making, the Brix can be lower as it undergoes a natural fermentation for a minimum of 10 months.

Tell us more about the daily routine of a Coconut Tapper

Our partner explained: “Coconut sap is collected by binding and cutting an unopened inflorescence or spadix, which contains baby coconut flowers and baby coconuts, in a special way. The tip of the spadix is cut off and shaved twice daily until the sap starts to drip out. These sweet ‘drippings’ are the same nectar that honeybees sip from the flowers and turn into honey in their beehives.”

She then told us about what the Tapper does each day: “A collection vessel is placed at the tip of the spadix where the sap will flow into and the tapper collects it. The number of hours spent in tapping and collecting the sap depends on the number of trees. Usually, it takes a Tapper 1-2 hours a day to tap 20-30 trees.”

What is the sap like when it’s collected?

Our partner shared with us this fascinating information about what the fresh sap is like. She said: “When freshly harvested, coconut sap is super sweet and could be considered the most nutritious drink because it contains vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Some say, it’s more nutritious than an apple!”

She then goes on to explain what happens next, if you don’t just down the delicious sap! She says: “After two or three days, it starts to turn sour and is placed in containers for it to undergo natural fermentation, until it becomes organic vinegar without any preservatives, chemical additives, artificial flavourings or artificial colours.  However, if we choose to make coconut nectar, we start cooking it slowly in large open pans, stirring constantly, until it becomes a sweet, sticky caramel tasting nectar.”

How does the tree do once its sap is removed?

There are some myths that abound in this area. Most revolve around the idea that a tapped tree won’t produce coconuts. Our partner states this is to do with how the tree is tapped. There is a multiple number of spadix on a single tree. For the tree to go on to produce coconuts, the Tapper need simply leave some spadix untapped, allowing them to bloom and fruit.

Know what you’re getting

So yes, you really are getting good stuff in every bottle of coconut vinegar, coconut aminos and coconut nectar and now you know how it ended up there!