Includes a comprehensive checklist for Factory Visits

AG PACIFIC NUTRICEUTICAL CORPORATION

 Contents

1 | Factory Visit Checklist

2 | The Freshness Test Checklist

3 | Chapter 1: What is fresh virgin

coconut oil like?
| Chapter 2: How to find the right
5 manufacturer?
8 | Chapter 3: Know your coconuts

11 | Chapter 4: Know your virgin

coconut oil
 FACTORY VISIT CHECKLIST
Checklist for farm-fresh, high quality virgin coconut oil

PART 1. WHAT VIRGIN COCONUT OIL DO I NEED?

Rank the properties, per category, from 1-3 with 1 being the most important.

Quality Aroma & Flavor Is freshness important?

__ High quality __ Fresh & light __ Very important
__ Average quality __ Semi-strong & coconutty __ Maybe
__ Low quality __ Strong coconutty __ No

PART 2. COCONUT OIL PROFILE

Fill this out based on the information provided by the company.
Company Name: ________________ Virgin Coconut Oil Process: _________
List of Organic Certifications
________________________________________________________________

Properties Company Info Notes

Laurin Content
(Ideal is 50%)

MCT Content
(Ideal is 60%)

How many seconds How long did it take?

did it take for the oil
to be absorbed by my
skin?
Rub a small amount of
coconut oil in your hand.
Keep rubbing until the oil
is absorbed by your skin.
___ Seconds ___ Minutes
Did it leave an aroma?
___ Left a strong aroma
___ Slight aroma
___ No aroma

What is their
Freshness Score?
Check page 2 for more
information

What makes their

coconut oil different?

Other notes

PART 3. COMPANY QUESTIONS

Production Capacity: _______________________________________________
How do they choose their raw materials? __________________________________
______________________________________________________________

This ebook contains a list of questions in each chapter. You can choose which questions is
relevant to your companys needs.

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PART 4: THE FRESHNESS TEST
Place a checkmark on the answer that best describes your experience. It is considered a red
flag if the company advises you that the information, on this list, is not important.
A. Compare the aroma and texture between their virgin coconut oil to a freshly
harvested/opened coconut.
The aroma & flavor:
___ 3. The same or very close to a freshly harvested/opened coconut.
___ 2. Slightly different to a freshly harvested/opened coconut.
___ 1. Isnt the same as a freshly harvested/opened coconut.

B. VCO: Does it have a strong coconutty smell or flavor?

___ 3. No, its very light.
___ 2. It has a semi-strong coconutty smell and/or flavor.
___ 1. It has a very strong coconutty smell and/or flavor.

C. VCO: Does it have a strong shade of yellow?

___ 3. No, its very clear.
___ 2. It has some shade of yellow.
___ 1. It has a strong shade of yellow.

D. Was it easy to drink?

___ 3. Yes.
___ 2. A bit.
___ 1. No, it was hard to swallow.

E. Do they have organic certifications?

___ 3. They have 3 or more organic certifications.
___ 2. They have 2 organic certifications.
___ 1. They have no organic certifications.

F. Coconuts: What age are the coconuts processed?

___ 3. 11-month and 12-month old coconuts.
___ 2. Any other age besides 11 or 12 month old coconuts.
___ 1. Company does not know.

G. Coconuts: Do they keep track of the coconuts date of harvest?

___ 2. Yes, they do.
___ 1. No, they dont.

H. Coconuts: How many hours does it take before the coconuts are processed?
___ 3. 48 hours or less.
___ 2. Three to four days
___ 1. Five days or more

PART 5: RATE THE FRESHNESS

Add up the numbers beside the checkmark. Refer to the legend below to determine the level of
freshness. The score: _______

21 8
Farm Fresh Not Fresh

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 CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS FRESH
VIRGIN COCONUT OIL LIKE?
Have you ever tasted virgin coconut oil from real, fresh, mature and organic-
certified coconuts?

It does not have a strong coconutty taste or aroma. Properly extracted

virgin coconut oil should retain its original composition: a light aroma, flavor
and texture.

Before we talk about this in detail, let us talk about how the coconutty
concept came to life. More than a decade ago, people started to discover the
wonders of virgin coconut oil. It was coined as a Miracle Food because of the
numerous health benefits it provided.

There was just one problem: the strong Most virgin coconut
aroma and flavor! Never mind the health
benefits - people couldnt drink it at all. oils does not taste,
smell or feel like it
To solve this, marketers coined the term
coconutty to explain the strong aroma
comes from freshly
and texture. With proper marketing, many harvested organic-
people started to believe that strong certified coconuts.
coconutty properties were normal.

Its not. The coconutty aroma and flavor is a byproduct or a result of the
processes and raw material used to extract the oil. The more an oil was
adulterated, the thicker the oil and the stronger its aroma and flavor would
be. In short, the coconutty aroma and flavor is good indicator when
determining how fresh an oil is. The stronger it is, the less fresh the oil is.

If this is the case, what is fresh virgin coconut oil like?

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 FARM FRESH VIRGIN COCONUT OIL
Farm fresh virgin coconut oils is the most raw,
natural and fresh virgin coconut oil with properties
that exists in real, fresh and mature coconut fruits.

Properties of Fresh Coconut Oil

1. Fresh and mild aroma and taste
2. Fine to touch
3. Smooth to drink
4. Gentle on skin
5. High content of laurin, MCT and olein oils.
Find more information in Chapter 4: Know your
virgin coconut oil

Why is farm fresh coconut oil so rare?

The highest quality virgin coconut oil is produced via the fresh-
centrifugation method. Fresh-centrifuged oil is not significantly heated
which helps it preserve the true nature of the oil. The only problem was: it
was not easy to implement; therefore, most companies took the easier route
the cold-pressed process.

Over the years, only a certain number of companies took on the challenge of
developing a virgin coconut oil that revolves around freshness instead of
mass production.

Where can I find producers of farm fresh virgin coconut oil?

The best way is to visit their factory to find out if they can produce farm
fresh coconut oil. You can use the Factory Visit Checklist, found on page
one, as a point of reference.

For more information, visit www.agnutriceutical.com/VCO101.

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 CHAPTER 2

HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT

MANUFACTURER

1. IT PAYS TO VISIT THE FACTORY Do the freshness test!

The freshness test allows is the easiest way to determine if a company has a
freshness standard. Take note, this has to be done with all companies.

Here is how to do it:

1. Ask your manufacturer for the following:
Cut a freshly harvested organic coconut
Companys virgin coconut oil
2. Compare the following properties between the coconut fruit and the virgin
coconut oil.
Taste: Is it easy to drink?
Aroma: Does it have a strong or light aroma?
Texture/Consistency: Is it smooth and light? Or thick?
Apply a small amount of coconut oil on your skin. How long does
it take before it is fully absorbed by your skin?
Use the Factory Visit Checklist, on page one, to get more information about
the freshness test!

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2. DO THEY PRODUCE THE TYPE OF VIRGIN COCONUT OIL
IM LOOKING FOR?
There are two types of coconut oil to compare: Farm Fresh vs Coconutty Oil.
Use the chart below to determine the type of oil you need:

Property Farm Fresh Coconutty

Process Fresh-Centrifugation Cold-Pressed

High quality cold-
pressed processes
Users Coconut lovers
Perfect for coconut lovers
who love the true flavor,
aroma and texture of farm
fresh virgin coconut oil.
Texture Light and thin texture
Easily absorbed by the
skin.
Easy to drink
Aroma Very light aroma
Aroma disappears in a few
seconds making it perfect to
use with perfumes.
Flavor Fresh coconut flavor
Does not compete with
current recipes. After all,
who wants coconut flavored
hotdogs?
Other factors to consider:
Do they have organic certifications valid in my country?
Which is more important: Quality or quantity?
Transparency: What levels of transparency does the company provide?
Fermentation
Prefer the strong flavor
Determine if your market is
accustomed to the strong
coconutty flavor and is not
open to farm fresh virgin
coconut oil.
Thick consistency
Consistency is
comparable to ordinary
cooking oil.
Strong or distinct
coconutty aroma
Wait for a couple of
minutes or hours for the
smell to disappear.
Strong coconutty flavor
Perfect for coconut-based
recipes.

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2. DO THEY USE HIGH QUALITY COCONUTS?
Not all companies understand how important it is to use high quality coconuts.
In fact, some of them even use coconuts that are weeks to a month old!

Farm-fresh virgin coconut oil only uses coconuts that are:

Real Fresh (not just fresh)
At optimum maturity
Organic Certified.

Learn more about this on Chapter 3: Know your coconuts.

3. ARE THEY A FAIRTRADE COMPANY?

A Fairtrade company is the best way to determine a companys dedication and
understanding of their corporate social responsibility.

A high quality virgin coconut oil comes from a high

quality coconut fruit produced by highly competent,
motivated and involved farmers.
Tony Geniston, AG Pacific Nutriceutical Corporation

Be careful: Some companies simply have the documentation but do not follow-
through with the process.

4. HOW DO THEY TAKE CARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT?

A companys factory is the perfect way to see how dedicated the company is
with creating farm fresh products. Some factors to consider are:
What are their environment-friendly processes?
Do they have a zero waste disposal system?
Are there plants, coconuts or flowers in the area?

5. ARE THEY HONEST AND TRANSPARENT?

Confirm, via a factory visit, the following information:
If the information in the website matches what is seen in the factory.
Provides extra service and support.

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 CHAPTER 3

KNOW YOUR COCONUTS

The secret of farm fresh virgin coconut oil is in choosing the right coconuts!

01. Do you use REAL-FRESH (not just fresh) COCONUTS?

In the coconut industry, coconut oil companies can legally use the term fresh
legally to define the following:
1. Coconut oil that does not come from copra (sun-dried or smoke-dried
coconut meat).
2. Coconuts that are several days old.

But are these coconuts really fresh?

No. Due to the onset of deterioration, these coconuts would yield oils that have
higher free fatty acid content. This has to be reduced by high-temperature
heating or chemical processing.

Real-fresh coconuts refers to coconuts that follow a freshness standard. This

means that the coconuts should be processed, at max, 48 hours from harvest.
These yields fresh oils with free fatty acid content that is close to the natural
level of 0.05%.

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 Important questions to ask:
1. Is there a record of the date of harvest of the coconuts in stock?
(Red Flag) If there is no record of the date of harvest, then there is
no guarantee that they use real-fresh coconuts.
2. Is there a FIFO (First-In First-Out) system or a freshness standard
being followed when processing the coconuts in stock? Companies
that have a freshness standard in place understands the
importance of using real-fresh coconuts to extract high quality oil.
3. Is the FIFO system based on date-of-harvest not date-of-delivery?
Note: The date of delivery does not guarantee that these coconuts
were freshly harvested.

02. Processed during OPTIMUM coconut fruit maturity

Farm fresh virgin coconut oil use coconuts processed during its optimum fruit
maturity: a blend of 11-month and 12-month old real-fresh coconut fruits.
Under normal conditions coconut trees
start to bear new fruits about every 30 days.
Those who produce
The new fruits reach full maturity in about farm fresh virgin
12 months, giving out the highest content of coconut oil
laurin oil. Coconut fruits that are 11-month
old yield oils with more delectable taste and understand the
aroma but lesser laurin oil. Beyond 12 importance of using
months, the mature fruits would already
start to sprout. the right coconuts.
A blend of 11-month and 12-month old real-fresh coconut fruits would yield
oils that are better-tasting yet high on laurin. This blend of coconut fruit
maturity can is achieved by consistent implementation of a 60-70 days
coconut fruit harvesting cycle.

Important questions to ask

1. Is there a record of farms where the coconuts on stock were harvested
from?
2. Is there a 60-70 day coconut harvesting schedule being followed?
(Red flag) If the manufacturer says that the age does not matter.

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 03. Organic-certified coconuts
Coconuts must be certified-organic. The
more organic certifications, the better.

Why is this important?

During the past few years, there has been a
dangerous level of chemical contamination
in coconut farms. The organic farming
process were dropped in favor of chemicals.

Chemical fertilizers to significantly increase production.

Chemical pesticides to stop losses from pest infestations.
Chemical herbicides to ease control of unwanted farm vegetation.

Other sources of contamination were:

Farmer households, located in the farms, have increased the use of
household chemicals like cleaning agents and house pest controls.
Neighboring farms that use chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides.

Organic certification drives the farm establishment to create a system that

improves farm production while avoiding the use of chemicals.

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 CHAPTER 4

KNOW YOUR
VIRGIN COCONUT OIL

Simply put it is pure.

A good quality virgin coconut oil is one that gives out the full nature of
coconut oil that exists in fresh fully-mature coconut fruit. It comes from good
quality coconuts: its laurin content is at least 50% and MCT content of at least
60%.

It is 100% natural: its nature not altered by processing like high-temperature

heating, fermentation and fractionation, or addition of substances like
odorants, colorants, texturants, liquifiers, and fortifiers. And it is pure: not
contaminated by chemicals along the entire value chain from the farm to the
consumers, or when processing residuals.
01. COMES FROM HIGH QUALITY COCONUTS
Coconut oil is highly valued as a health food for being able to provide
healthful fat nourishment: naturally rich in laurin and MTC oils, and just the
right amount of the essential oils olein and linolein, and food oils myristin,
palmitin and stearin. The healthful oil can only come from good quality
coconuts: like from a long-established natural variety used in traditional
medicines, and grown organically.

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 Important questions to ask:
1. Are coconuts used of the Malayan Tall variety, or any other long-
established natural variety used in traditional medicine?
2. Is laurin content at least 50% and MCT at least 62%?
3. Is laurin and MCT content monitored and controlled in coconut
sourcing?
4. Are potentials for chemical contamination in the farm identified
and preventive controls implemented and maintained?
5. Are organic methods positively implemented to improve farm
productivity?
6. Are measures established to prevent contamination of organic
coconuts with non-organic coconuts during handling, transport and
storage?
7. Are coconuts fully traceable to the farm where they came from?

02. COMES FROM SUSTAINABLE

COCONUT FARMS Strong farmers are
Good quality coconut fruits are produced by necessary to
good coconut farmers. In the coconut value
chain, farmers are the weakest in the link, consistently produce
and tends to be dis-advantaged in terms of good quality coconut
being able to receive his fair share of value
from the chain. Strong farmers are fruits.
necessary to consistently produce good quality coconut fruits: competent,
motivated, and involved.

Important questions to ask

1. Are need-based trainings regularly conducted for farmers to improve
farm performance?
2. Are measures implemented towards fair sharing of value from the
value-chain between the farm and the factory?
3. Is there a standard being followed for sharing of value, like Fairtrade or
any other reference standard suitable for the purpose?
4. Are farmers positively involved in implementing programs and
measures to improve farm performance?

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02. 100% NATURAL AND PURE

The good reputation of coconut oil from its long use in traditional medicine is
founded on its being part of natures way of caring for itself. A healthful virgin
coconut oil is a complete extract of the oil that exist in the fresh fully-mature
coconut fruit, giving the full essence of the oil in its pure form.

Important questions to ask

1. How does the company define a 100% natural and pure virgin coconut
oil? What processes are set in place to ensure the quality of the oil?
2. Do they understand the importance of choosing the right coconuts? If
yes, what processes do they use to get the right coconuts?
3. Can they provide the results of the tests on their coconut oil? Example:
Do they have tests that shows their oil is free of harmful chemicals?

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 LETS TALK'

www.agnutriceutical.com

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