From coconut water to Starbucks drinks, the U.S. is having a love affair with coconuts. All Market Inc., which owns Vita Coco, estimates that the U.S. market is worth $1.2 billion, according to a Bloomberg report. But soon, there may not be enough coconuts in the Caribbean — our biggest source of the fruit — to quench our thirst.
The report names droughts, storms, and Lethal Yellowing disease as a few culprits of the shortage.
“It’s fair to say that at this pace, the Caribbean is running out of coconuts,” Compton Paul, coordinator the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute's regional coconut program, told Bloomberg.
Vilma Da Silva, who has been exporting coconuts from Guyana, has seen this firsthand. “We want to get into more international markets and export more but there aren’t enough farms to buy from,” she said.
So, is there a solution, or are we doomed to live in a world without coconuts?
Fortunately, other places including India, Indonesia, and the Philippines are stepping up to meet the demand.
Melvin Bautista, owner of the coconut water brand Coco Express del Caribe, explained that local farms are failing because people are buying from exporters.
For those who can't survive without coconut water, the report ends with some very simple advice from Bautista: “Start planting more coconuts.”
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