Indonesia
Coconut Sugar Producers - Indonesia
Yogyakarta in central Java is the home of the Indonesian villagers who grow and harvest our Coconut Sugar. They use a centuries old technique to provide us with this healthy sweetener, which in turn ensures a steady source of income for their community. 100% of growing, harvesting and processing takes place at the village level, giving these farmers the potential for a better life. This is a unique tradition of the Javanese and they are known to produce the best quality Coconut Sugar available.
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{Coconut sugar producers in yogyakarta}
We work with a large cooperative of Javanese coconut growers to produce this very special product. The villagers have selected certain coconut trees that they use for harvesting the nectar - when the nectar is harvested the trees don't give any coconuts. The men go out twice a day (morning and afternoon) to harvest the nectar, climbing the trees using step like wedges that are carved into the trunks of the trees. They then collect the sugar blossom nectar by gently slicing the flower.
The processing of the nectar then takes place in the village houses, making it a true cottage industry, where the moisture is evaporated out of the nectar to form the delicious crystallised sugar. The production of Coconut Sugar allows the women of Yogyakarta on the island of Java in Indonesia to work from home without the imposition of factory labour techniques. The advantage of this is that without investing in expensive equipment, the community can benefit from the income this brings in without putting undue strain on families who need to look after their children. In turn, the community can develop further infrastructure to improve their quality of life.
Our Coconut Sugar is Fair Trade Certified by Control Union under Fair Choice.