Desiccated Coconut Fat and Moisture Specification: Methods, Bands, and Tolerances for Bakery and Confectionery Buyers
Key takeaways
- Codex Alimentarius (CODEX STAN 177-1991, revision 2011) sets desiccated coconut moisture at 4% m/m maximum and oil content at 60% or more for full-fat, or 35% to under 60% for the partially defatted description. It names the test methods too: AOAC 925.40 for moisture and AOAC 948.22 for oil.
- A grade at 28% fat sits below the 35% floor of the second band. The standard describes only two oil-content bands, so a “low fat” name on a 28% grade rests on the commercial spec, not on Codex.
- Pressing oil out of the kernel concentrates whatever water is left. On a simple mass balance, 3% moisture becomes about 6% unless the grade is dried again, which is why a low-fat grade needs its own moisture line.
- Silk Foods Ceylon (SFC) supplies full-fat (64% fat) and fine low-fat (28% fat) desiccated coconut from a BRCGS and FSSC 22000 V6 audited facility in Matale, with a 1 MT first-order MOQ.
- The method table and the worked mass balance below are the parts to forward to your QA lead.
Most desiccated coconut RFQs already carry a fat line and a moisture line. What they leave out is the part that decides disputes: how each number is measured, on what basis, with what tolerance, and what the standard actually defines. Two labs can test the same lot and report fat two points apart without either being wrong. This piece is for the QA and procurement teams who have already chosen a grade and a fat level, and now need the spec to survive a COA comparison.
The fat-level decision is covered in the full-fat vs low-fat desiccated coconut formulation guide, and the sieve grades and general RFQ template in the desiccated coconut grade selection guide. This one covers what those leave open: the measurement and the maths behind the two numbers.
What does Codex actually define for fat and moisture?
The Codex standard for desiccated coconut, in its 2011 revision, defines three things a buyer can cite by number. Moisture is limited to 4% m/m maximum. Oil content is 60% m/m or more for desiccated coconut produced without oil extraction, and 35% or more but below 60% m/m where oil has been partially extracted by physical means. Total acidity of the extracted oil is limited to 0.3% m/m, measured as lauric acid.
Section 9.1.2 adds a labelling point: the product name should indicate oil content in line with those descriptions. That is a name for the finished retail or ingredient label, and it is why the band matters beyond the lab.
| Parameter | Codex requirement | Method named in the standard | What to add in your RFQ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moisture | 4% m/m maximum | AOAC 925.40 (loss on drying) | Your own ceiling if tighter, and the method |
| Oil content, full-fat | 60% m/m minimum | AOAC 948.22 (gravimetry) | Target and band, stated basis |
| Oil content, partially defatted | 35% to under 60% m/m | AOAC 948.22 (gravimetry) | Target and band, stated basis |
| Total acidity of extracted oil | 0.3% m/m maximum, as lauric acid | ISO 660:2009 or AOCS Cd 3d-63 | Ceiling, if your shelf-life target is long |
The 4% ceiling is a floor of protection, not a recommendation. Silk Foods Ceylon (SFC) works to 4% m/m maximum as its standard and offers 3% maximum as a written spec, which a buyer has to ask for in the RFQ. The grade-level reasoning for tightening is in the Ceylon desiccated coconut capability brief; this piece takes the 3% as given and asks how it is verified.
Spec snapshot: fine desiccated coconut, two fat levels Full-fat: 64% fat, 660 kcal per 100 g, fibre 16 g, protein 7 g Fine low-fat: 28% fat, 380 kcal per 100 g, fibre 18 g, protein 9 g Shelf life: 12 to 24 months, both grades Moisture: 4% m/m maximum standard, 3% maximum as a written spec Facility: Matale, BRCGS and FSSC 22000 V6 audited, per-batch Certificate of Analysis MOQ: 1 metric tonne first order
Where does a 28% grade sit against the Codex low-fat band?
A fat figure of 28% is below the 35% floor of the second Codex band. Read literally, the standard describes full-fat (60% and above) and a partially defatted range (35% to under 60%), and says nothing about a product below 35%. The 28% fine low-fat grade is therefore outside both described bands.
That does not make it a non-compliant product. It makes it a commercial grade that the standard does not name. For a buyer, the consequence is practical: if your destination market or retailer expects the name on the label to map to a Codex description, ask in writing how the grade is to be named, and write the target fat range into the spec rather than relying on a word such as “low”.
The same logic applies in reverse. A supplier offering “low fat” at 45% is inside the Codex partially defatted band and a long way from 28%. Both are honest descriptions, and they behave differently in a bar press or a batter. The number, not the adjective, is the specification.
Why pressing oil out raises the moisture line
Here is the arithmetic that most RFQs miss. Take 100 kg of full-fat desiccated coconut at 64% oil and 3% moisture. Remove oil only, leaving the water and everything else in place, until the product reaches the target fat level.
| Target fat | Oil removed per 100 kg input | Product left | Moisture if no re-drying |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35% (Codex floor of the band) | about 44.6 kg | about 55.4 kg | about 5.4% |
| 28% (commercial low-fat grade) | 50.0 kg | 50.0 kg | 6.0% |
The three kilograms of water do not leave with the oil, so they become a larger share of a smaller mass. At 6% the product fails the Codex 4% ceiling by half again, and fails a 3% written spec by double. In practice the drying step has to be arranged so the finished low-fat grade lands inside the ceiling, which is a process fact the buyer should confirm rather than assume. Bringing the 28% product from 6% back to 3% means evaporating roughly 1.5 kg of water per 100 kg of input, on this idealised balance.
This is a mass-balance illustration, not SFC process data. It exists to show why the moisture line on a low-fat grade is not automatically satisfied just because the full-fat grade meets it, and why a buyer who writes one ceiling for both grades should ask for lot-level moisture on each. The same arithmetic explains why defatted coconut products carry their own moisture limits elsewhere in the range, as in the coconut flour spec and fat-loss guide.
Which basis is the fat figure on?
The Codex text states oil content as m/m, a mass fraction of the product as tested, and the table names the method. It does not add a dry-matter basis. A lab that reports on dry matter will show a higher number.
At 3% moisture, 64% fat as received is 64 divided by 0.97, or about 66.0% on dry matter. For the 28% grade it is about 28.9%. The gap is small but it is real, and it is the usual reason two COAs for one lot differ. The fix costs nothing: write “as received (m/m)” or “dry matter” into the spec line, and require the COA to say which it used.
Buyer’s checklist: fat and moisture lines for the RFQ
- Oil content as a target and a band, not “low fat”
- Basis stated: as received (m/m) or dry matter
- Oil method named (AOAC 948.22) on the COA
- Moisture ceiling stated (4% m/m or 3% written spec)
- Moisture method named (AOAC 925.40, loss on drying)
- Total acidity of extracted oil with its method (ISO 660:2009 or AOCS Cd 3d-63)
- Per-lot COA for each grade, not one shared sheet
- Retest rule: which lab is the referee if buyer and supplier results differ
Writing tolerance and a retest rule
A specification with no tolerance invites argument at the dock. Set the target and a band for oil content (the SFC low-fat grade is specified at 25 to 30%, with a catalogue nominal of 28%), set moisture as a ceiling only, and set total acidity as a ceiling only. Fat has two sides to be held; moisture and acidity have one.
Then add the clause nobody writes until the first dispute: the referee lab. Name an accredited lab and the method, agree that its result on a retained sample decides, and state who pays. Loss on drying is sensitive to how fast the sample is ground and how long it sits open, so the retained sample should be sealed at dispatch.
The SRV procurement desk reads COAs against RFQs line by line, so the matching is quick when the RFQ is specific. When it is not, the supplier fills the gaps with its own internal standard, and the buyer inherits it.
Silk Route Ventures (SRV) is not the right supplier for a buyer whose brief is the lowest price per tonne with no specification. For brands competing on a defined fat level, a written moisture ceiling and a COA that matches the RFQ, the Ceylon coconut supplier page and the product pages for fine desiccated coconut and fine low-fat desiccated coconut carry the specification sheets and the document list. The wider framework is in the B2B buyer’s guide to Ceylon coconut.
Frequently asked questions
What moisture limit does Codex set for desiccated coconut?
CODEX STAN 177-1991, in its 2011 revision, limits moisture to 4% m/m maximum, measured by AOAC 925.40 (loss on drying). Many bakery buyers write a tighter ceiling of 3% into the RFQ. SFC works to 4% as standard and supplies 3% maximum as a written spec on request.
What oil content counts as low fat under Codex?
The standard describes partially defatted desiccated coconut as 35% m/m or more but below 60% m/m oil, with 60% or more for the full-fat product. A grade at 28% fat sits below that band, so its fat range should be written into the spec directly.
Why can two COAs show different fat for the same lot?
Common causes are basis and method. Fat reported on dry matter reads about two points higher than as received at 3% moisture (64% becomes about 66%). Specify the basis and the method, AOAC 948.22 in the Codex standard, on every COA.
Does Silk Foods Ceylon supply desiccated coconut under a written fat and moisture spec?
Yes. SFC supplies full-fat (64% fat) and fine low-fat (28% fat) desiccated coconut from its Matale facility, audited to BRCGS and FSSC 22000 V6, with a per-batch COA and a 1 metric tonne first-order MOQ. Send the fat band, basis and moisture ceiling with the RFQ.
What is the R&D timeline for a custom fat level?
The SRV R&D team scopes custom formulation and sample development on a 3 to 4 week timeline from signed brief to approved formulation.
How Silk Route Ventures can help
Silk Route Ventures (SRV) supplies full-fat and fine low-fat desiccated coconut from the Silk Foods Ceylon (SFC) facility in Matale, audited under BRCGS and FSSC 22000 V6, with a per-batch Certificate of Analysis and a 1 metric tonne first-order MOQ. Samples ship door-to-door by international courier (DHL, FedEx, UPS) in 3 to 5 business days, so a buyer can test the lot against its own fat basis and moisture method before a purchase order. Brands that need a different fat level can use the R&D team, on a 3 to 4 week timeline from signed brief to approved formulation. Contact us with the spec lines above to request a sample pack.
Sources
- Codex Alimentarius, Codex Standard for Desiccated Coconut (CODEX STAN 177-1991), Revision 2011, Food and Agriculture Organization / World Health Organization. Sections 2.1, 3.2.4, 9.1.2 and 10 (methods of analysis). Text read October 2026 from a copy of the 2011 revision.
- Silk Route Ventures, Desiccated Coconut and Desiccated Coconut, Fine, Low Fat product pages, esilkroute.com.lk, nutrition and shelf-life figures, retrieved October 2026.
- Silk Route Ventures, Ceylon Desiccated Coconut and Coconut Flour: A CPG Brief, esilkroute.com.lk, 2026, for the 4% standard and 3% written-spec moisture position.
Written by the Silk Route Ventures Trade Team. Silk Route Ventures (E-Silk Route Ventures Ltd) is a Sri Lankan B2B supply-chain operator for the Food, Beverage, Wellness, and Nutraceuticals sectors. The Silk Foods Ceylon manufacturing arm holds BRCGS and FSSC 22000 V6 certifications. Questions or to request a sample: Contact us or email info@esilkroute.com.lk.