Productivity and Sustainability of Coconut Production and Husk Utilization in the Philippines: Coconut Husk Availability and Utilization.

The technical possibility to manufacture fibreboards based on coconut husk and bonded with tannin adhesive formulation was shown. However, there were limited information on the husk production in different coconut producing provinces in the Philippines. Surveys and interviews were conducted to assess husk productivity and utilization by the smallholder coconut farmers. In 2014 and 2015, a total of 13 top coconut producing provinces in the Philippines were surveyed. A total of 1,200 coconut farmers were interviewed. A total of 200 nuts were sampled from the six provinces in the Philippines to characterize husk of coconut. Statistical analysis results showed that the weight of husks are significantly different (p = 0.05) between the provinces across the islands. The heaviest husks (dry weight) were in the province of Northern Samar (463 ± 11 grams). The mean density (ton ha^-1 yr^-1) of husk production in the 13 provinces was analyzed using the Geographic Information System (GIS) spatial analyst tool. Among the 13 provinces surveyed, Davao Oriental in Mindanao had the highest density (0.70 - 1.43), followed by Camarines Sur (0.66 - 1.29) in Luzon. In the Visayas, Northern Samar (0.55 - 1.17) has the highest density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]