Cohune oil explained

Cohune oil is pressed from the seeds of the cohune palm, which is native to Central and South America.

Along with other byproducts of the palm, cohune oil is believed to have been used by cultures in southern Mesoamerica since the pre-Columbian era, in particular by the Maya. Uses of the oil include as a lubricant, for cooking, soapmaking and lamp oil. For this latter purpose the oil was placed in earthenware or soapstone lamps and lit with a wick, for cooking and illumination.

Cohune oil is made up of the following portions of fatty acids:^[1]

	Percentage	-		7.5%	-		6.5%	-		46.5%	-		16.0%	-		9.5%	-		3.0%	-		10.0%	-		1.0%

Commercialization

Cohune oil is generally not used commercially because the cohune palm is very difficult to break open. However, the manufacture and usage of the oil continues among certain contemporary Maya communities in Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.^{[2] [3]}

External links

• Attalea cohune, Floridata

Notes and References

1. Book: Axtell, B.L.. 1992. Cohune palm. http://www.fao.org/docrep/X5043E/x5043E06.htm#Cohune%20palm. Minor Oil Crops. from research by R.M. Fairman. Rome. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 92-5-103128-2. 26187175. 2007-01-01. registration.
2. Book: Gann, Thomas W.F. . Thomas Gann . 1918 . The Maya Indians of Southern Yucatan and Northern British Honduras . . Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin no. 64. . Washington DC . 424421 . 17, 31,130–131.
3. Book: Schlesinger, Victoria . 2001 . Animals and Plants of the Ancient Maya: A Guide . Juan C. Chab-Medina (illus.), foreword by Carlos Galindo-Leal . Austin . . 0-292-77759-0 . 46937482. 116–119.