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In a
special meeting on January 25 2006 which was arranged
by the NAST Committee on Coconut Oil Research for
Health and hosted by the Bureau of Agriculture and
Fisheries Products Standards (BAFPS) headquarters in
Quezon City, representatives from the Bureau of Food
and Drugs (BFAD), and Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA)
and NAST, clarified issues regarding the Philippine
National Standard for virgin coconut oil PNS/BAFPS
22:2004, ICS 67.200.10. The group arrived at a
consensus on the status of knowledge and information
on virgin coconut oil relevant to the PNS:
1. The Philippine National Standard on virgin coconut
oil as food is adequate. However, due to current
status the standards might be subjected to revision
upon results of all studies have been gathered.
2.
Coconut fatty acid composition in the PNS is based on
the data for refined, bleached and deodorized (RBD)
coconut oil in Codex Standard 210 (1999). The range
for lauric acid is 45.1-53.2% based on total fatty
acids. Virgin coconut oils have similar fatty acids
composition regardless of process (cold or heat), but
some samples exceed the lauric acid content range of
the PNS, based on data from BFAD and Ateneo de Manila
University. Values from the Institute of Food Science
and Technology UP Los Baños (47.6-52.6%, 13 samples)
are within the lauric acid range in PNS. Further
observations on fatty acid composition will be
collected and all values will be expressed as percent
of total fatty acids, and not as percent of the oil.
3.
Available data from BFAD and Institute of Food Science
and Technology UP Los Baños suggest that all virgin
coconut oils, regardless of process, have very low
content of vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) content, if
any.
4.
The creation of a Technical Working Group (TWG) for
the revision of PNS for virgin coconut oil as food
with members coming from BFAD, PCA, academe, NAST,
industry organizations and other stakeholders, with
BAFPS serving as Secretariat will help implement the
revised foreword of the PNS that "Provisions of the
standard may be revised upon recommendations of
stakeholders as long as these are supported by
published scientific studies."
5.
Data to be used by the TWG as bases for revision of
the PNS should always include data from an independent
laboratory in order to validate data from virgin
coconut oil manufacturers.
6.
The PNS for virgin coconut oil as food is separate and
distinct from the PNS for virgin coconut oil as food
supplement proposed to be formulated by BFAD.
(sgd.)MR.
GILBERTO F. LAYESE
(sgd.)
DR. LETICIA BAÑEZ-GUTIERREZ
Director
Director
Bureau of Agriculture and
Bureau of Food and Drugs
Fisheries Products
Standards
Department of Health
Department of Agriculture
(sgd.)MR.
JESUS EMMANUEL M. PARAS (sgd.)DR.
BIENVENIDO O. JULIANO
Administrator
National Scientist
Philippine Coconut Authority
Chair, NAST
Committee on
Department of Agriculture
Coconut Oil Research for Health
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