I'm having a heck of a time finding any young green coconuts in California

From: Rhonda
March 8, 2004
Subject: help-young green coconuts?

Hello!!

I'm Rhonda and I've been reading Hooked on Raw and love the book. I'm having a heck of a time finding any young green coconuts, however, and I'm hoping for some help. I've been to Hispanic markets and to Asian markets. All they have are the sweet young coconuts from Thailand. At one Asian market a box boy said he used to see the green coconuts but they just stopped coming in and he didn't know why-the grocery manager didn't speak English, so I was a little lost and befuddled. My local health food stores are not familiar with, nor can they find the coconuts recommended in Hooked on Raw. Can you help me?

I live in Altadena, California. That's close to Pasadena and Los Angeles. Who can I contact in this area to help me locate this item? Any help you can give me will be appreciated. I've been working on this for weeks now.

I really look forward to your suggestions.

Thanks so much! -- Rhonda --

Dear Rhonda,

Thank you for the good word on my book!

Unfortunately, as far as I know, the green water coconuts are not available in California.

About two years ago, a friend of mine in LA did the same thing you are doing trying to find them because he became intrigued by my description of them. The information that he finally got from someone in the downtown area of LA was that they weren't allowed in because of a bug that lives in the husk. So supposedly to protect the agriculture industry in CA, the coconuts are not allowed in. This is a result of the erroneous idea that bugs can decimate healthy crops. Plants can be unhealthy just like people can be unhealthy and when plants are imbalanced in their nutritional needs, then Nature, through her bugs, tries to recycle them. The intelligent idea would be to make sure that the crops are healthy and then no bug could wipe them out.

It parallels the idea in allopathic medical circles that bugs are the cause of disease and therefore should be killed with pharmaceuticals. I don't see much changing in either our agriculture that uses millions of tons of pesticides to control bugs or in our mainstream medicine that urges people to use drugs for what ails them — until the basic idea that bugs are the enemy changes.

Bugs are not the enemy. When they are out of control in either plants or in our bodies, they are merely the messenger trying to communicate the message of imbalance that needs to be addressed.

Well, now I've told you more than you asked.

So, probably the only way that you will get to experience those wonderful green water coconuts is by taking a vacation in Puerto Rico or Florida where they are readily available. We also are able to get them here in NY, fortunately, but they are shipped in.

When I wrote the information in my book, I was not aware that these coconuts were not available everywhere. I'm sorry. I hope you get to experience this wonderful miracle food of Nature some day.

With blessings and peace,

Rhio

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