India has recently achieved the distinction of being the highest producer of coconuts in the world, having overtaken the next highest producer, the Philippine Islands. However the average coconuts produced per palm in this country is dismal, standing at about 46 nuts per palm per year in 2006-07 compared to 30 nuts per palm in 1950-51.

Coconut is being cultivated in an area of over 1.94 million hectares in India. The estimated requirement of coconut seedlings in the country is in the region of 30 million per annum. About 90% of the coconut growing area is situated in the four southern states of India, with Kerala occupying about 50% of coconut cultivated area in India.

Global trade is reaching towns and cities across continents and in the most remote places. Due to the changes in progress and development, there is a need for seeking out products that give added value and save time and effort. Packaged Tender Coconut Water is available outside hospitals today. The ubiquitous vendor of tender coconuts is almost on every street.

The growing market for all coconut products is waking up even in the USA and Europe, countries which have never used coconut in their cuisine. Virgin Coconut Oil, selling at a premium, is also being valued for its health benefits with claims being made that it is very beneficial for HIV Aids patients with some scientific validation too.

Coconut oil for edible purposes is now being claimed to be the second best edible oil in the world, after Olive oil. Much has been proclaimed about the temperate world’s incorrect propaganda of soya bean oil being better than the tropical world’s coconut oil. The demand for coconut products will steadily grow at an increasing pace as education, awareness and prosperity reaches more and more people.

India has not made tangible progress in product diversification and by-product utilization except for traditional activities of oil milling and coir products. Drastic change in this situation is the need of the hour to make coconut farming a profitable venture as is being achieved by other coconut growing countries through processing and export of diverse coconut products.

In India the demand for seedlings is primarily and hopefully met by planting nuts collected from high yielding palms. Unfortunately most often this is not so. A few hundred thousand hybrid seedlings are produced by The Coconut Development Board and the Agricultural Departments of various states, and a handful of private growers. Deejay is the largest producer of hybrid seedlings among all and follows very scientific method of hybridization program in its breeding gardens.