Introduction

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AbstractCoconut is popularly known as ‘Kalpavriksha’ as it provides, to name a few, all the basic requirements like food (from fruits), drink (from water), shelter (from coconut leaves and trunk), health (from coconut oil, coconut water etc.), fuel (coconut oil, coir, wood) and wealth to mankind besides providing livelihood and social security for millions who are depending on this crop directly or indirectly. It is also called as ‘Tree of Life’, ‘Tree of Heaven’, ‘Tree of Abundance’, ‘Tree of Virtues’, ‘King of Palms’, ‘Nature’s Super Market’, ‘Coco-da-bahia’, or ‘Coconut-of-the-beach’. Coconut water present inside the fruit is sometimes referred to as ‘fluid of life’, ‘coconut juice’ or ‘Noelani’ (meaning ‘Dew from the Heavens’). Coconut water from 6 to 7 months old fruits is highly valued as a ready-to-drink healthy beverage, and viewed as a substitute for carbonated drinks and processed juices, owing to its high nutrition content. In the recent past, the demand for coconut water has increased many folds, mostly in non-coconut cultivating regions, especially in North America and Europe. This chapter on ‘Introduction’ elaborates the economic importance of coconut palms in general and coconut water in specific. The various stages of fruit development and the need for proper harvesting and handling of coconut fruits are also appropriately elaborated in different sections.