‘Coconut jerky’ to be showcased at Auckland Food Show
Tavulomo’s exciting new raw, vegan coconut jerky and premium grade Tavulomo coconut oil made from Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) will be exhibited at Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) New Zealand’s Pacific Hub at the Auckland Food Show this week.
Chris Wyllie and his partner Rusila Vere are a niche supplier of coconut products from Fiji. The Tavulomo coconut range includes, coconut oil, meat (salad), water and jerky. However, they will be promoting their top-grade coconut oil and coconut jerky snacks.
The raw, vegan, coconut jerky is one of their latest products that had been in development for eight months. Mr Wyllie began trialling different kinds of dried coconut snacks using young coconut flesh left over from harvesting coconut water. The coconut jerky has its own special Tavulomo natural raw vegan seasoning added to give it a distinctive flavour.
The premium grade Tavulomo coconut oil is made from Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO), using only fresh coconuts and the table drying method. The process takes just 90 minutes to make premium coconut oil with a unique, light coconut flavour.
The value-added products have opened the door to new opportunities for Tavulomo Coconut Processing Limited in the raw and vegan market in New Zealand, France and Japan, with recent enquiries from USA.
Tavulomo’s Coconut products are made in Tavulomo village in Bua on the island of Vanua Levu in Fiji. The processing factory supports the local villagers in employment and the coconut tree farmers.
Tavulomo premium grade coconut oil follows strict international quality control and documentation. It has already attracted international attention after Mr Wyllie attended the ANUGA Food Fair in Cologne, Germany, in 2015. The fair is held every second year with some 7,000 international exhibitors with more than 160,000 trade visitors from 187 countries.
Mr Wyllie was part of a Pacific delegation organised by Robyn Ekstrom, PTI Trade Promotion Advisor Europe. Mr Wyllie met a French buyer at ANUGA 2015 and since gone on to a 3rd shipment of coconut oil to Paris just recently.