As a way of supporting local communities in the world's largest coconut oil producing country, the Osaka-based company uses part of its sales revenue to donate seedlings and fertilizer back to Filipino villages.
Cocowell President Yu Mizui, 39, went to university in the Philippines in 2002 to study about environmental issues in developing countries.
While there he was shocked by the sight of young children scavenging through mountains of garbage, Mizui said he realized that the issue of poverty must be tackled before talking about environmental problems. He then proceeded to set up Cocowell in 2004.
There are numerous coconut farms in Filipino villages, but income for the farmers was minimal as the fruit was sold as raw ingredients to major corporations overseas. That gave Mizui the idea to add value to the farmers' products by keeping processing in the Philippines.
"Generating a product that can only be produced locally would help increase the farmers' income," Mizui said, recalling the genesis of his idea.
The method Cocowell chose was the locals' traditional way of producing coconut oil -- fermenting raw coconut juice at room temperature for two to three days and then separating the water, milk and oil contents. Compared with the method commonly used at large-scale plants and other producers, such as using centrifuges or pressing oil from dried coconut flesh, the traditional way better preserves both the coconut's taste and nutritional value.
After many visits to the Philippine Coconut Authority for negotiations, the company began selling its cosmetic and edible products in 2005, with the cooperation of local farmers.
Business was slow to start, but Cocowell's sales shot up to 200 million yen in 2014 -- up from a mere 30 million yen the previous year -- and are projected to hit 1 billion yen ($8.3 million) this year.
In addition to online sales, the company also broadened its distribution network by selling at major supermarkets and department stores.
Aside from coconut oil, Cocowell also offers cosmetics and soap, as well as accessories made from coconut trees. It has four contracted factories in the Philippines, and Mizui visits the country at least once every two months.
"I don't want this to be just a temporary boom," he said. "I want to make coconut oil a part of the Japanese people's lifestyle and also contribute to the development of villages in the Philippines."
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
