Harvest Methods
THE fruit from shorter growing coconut trees may be harvested from the ground using a machete or knife to cut the stem just above the shoulder of the fruit. The fruit may also be twisted or snapped off the tree by hand. Fruit borne on mature tall trees may be harvested with the aid of a ladder or climbing device, by skilled climbers or by using a sharp blade attached to a long pole.

The coconuts are generally left to drop to the ground and collected after the entire tree has been harvested. If the majority of fruit on an entire bunch is ready for harvest, the coconuts can be harvested as a unit by severing the stem just above the first fruit in the cluster.

PREPARATION FOR MARKET
The coconuts should be gathered from the field soon after harvest and taken to a shaded collection site. Fruit which are unmarketable due to excessive insect damage, decay, or undesirably small fruit are discarded. The remaining fruit should be prepared for market by cleaning/de-husking, sorting, and packing.

CLEANING/DE-HUSKING
The surface of water coconuts should be cleaned with a damp cloth or cotton gloves to remove excess dirt, dust, or undesirable stains. Water coconuts marketed domestically are typically not de-husked. However, most coconuts intended for export must be de-husked to reduce the transport weight and volume.

Coconuts should be dried for several days at ambient temperature before de-husking by hand. The outer coloured skin (exocarp), plus the fibrous inner husk (mesocarp) are stripped away by striking the coconut against a sharp-pointed metal stake mounted on a platform. A few impaling strokes loosen the husk, making it easier to be removed. A machete can also be used to initiate the de-husking process.

De-husked coconuts are oval to round in shape with the eyes showing. To prevent browning, the de-husked coconuts can be dipped in a one per cent to three per cent of sodium metabisulfite solution for two to five minutes. This treatment prevents browning for a period of five to seven days. A fungicide may be included in the sodium meta-bisulfite solution to inhibit the growth of surface mould. The discarded husks can be placed several layers deep over the de-husked coconuts to help reduce desiccation.

GRADING
Water coconuts intended for export should be graded according to size, uniformity of shape, and degree of skin blemishes if they are not de-husked. The fruit should be categorised into small, medium, and large sizes. The fruit should be uniform in shape and free of noticeable blemishes or skin damage from insects, diseases, or physical injury.
Surface colour should be uniform and characteristic of the cultivar. The preferred skin colour of none de-husked water coconuts in the export market is green. De-husked coconuts should be free of stress cracks and not have deeply sunken eyes. The fruit should not have any protruding germination tubes, leakage of water around the eyes, or surface mould. When shaken, the fruit should have a sloshing sound, indicating the presence of water in the coconut. Any fruit that does not have a sloshing sound when shaken should not be packed for market. The most common size for exported de-husked coconuts is between 750 gm to 850 gm (1.7 lb to 1.9 lb), although the acceptable sizes typically range from 600 gm to I kg (1.3 lb to 2.21b).

WAXING
The market life of water coconuts can be extended by waxing the fruit with paraffin.
Waxing significantly reduces weight loss and is also very effective in reducing stress cracking of de-husked coconuts during transport. The fruit are waxed by rapidly dipping them in a tank of melted paraffin.

PACKING
Coconuts are packed in various types of containers, depending on the market destination. Domestically marketed water coconuts may be sold in bulk or packed in large synthetic or mesh sacks of known fruit count per sack. If the coconuts are sold in bulk, the fruit are usually loaded onto the bed of a large truck and transported to the destination market. Considerable manual labour is required to load and unload the bed of a truck with loose coconuts. In large-scale operations, the loading process is made more efficient by packing the fruit in large wooden bins on top of pallets. A hand jack or fork-lift can be used to move the bins onto the bed of the truck.