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Coconut sugar is one of the primary sweeteners I use in my home for baking. Other common names include palm sugar, coconut palm sugar, and coconut syrup. The reason I love it is because it’s not only delicious but also healthy and sustainable for our planet.
Made from the sap of cut flower buds from the coconut palm, coconut sugar, and coconut nectar are a source of minerals, vitamin C, B vitamins, and some amino acids. Coconut sugar has been used as a traditional sweetener for thousands of years in South and South-East Asia.
How Does Coconut Sugar Compare with Cane Sugar?
Sweeteners derived from cane sugar can overly stress the pancreas as the glycemic index of these sweeteners is high compared with coconut sugar. Even maple syrup has a rather high glycemic index in comparison.
The glycemic index (GI) is the rate of how fast blood sugar levels rise after eating a particular type of food. A high GI means that the food is rapidly absorbed by the body, spiking the blood sugar causing the pancreas to release large amounts of insulin. A low GI indicates a food that is more slowly absorbed, thereby preventing that health-damaging insulin spike.
The glycemic index of a food can be reduced by eating healthy fats along with the sweetener of choice. Hence, traditional desserts such as cream and fruit, cookies made with butter, and flan (eggs, sugar, whole milk). However, for some with blood sugar issues, this is not enough to prevent problems with insulin.
Here is the glycemic index of many common sweeteners on the market (higher GI = higher blood sugar spike).
Stevia 0
Monk fruit 0
Yacon Syrup 1
Xylitol 7
Agave 15-30
Date Sugar and Syrup 20
Brown Rice Syrup (traditionally made) 25
Coconut Sugar/Nectar 30
Palm Jaggery 35
Raw Honey 35-58
Malted Barley 40
Sucanat 43
Organic Sugar 47
Maple Syrup 54
Blackstrap Molasses 54
Evaporated Cane Juice 55
Raw Sugar (Turbinado) 65
Corn Syrup 75
White Sugar 80
High Fructose Corn Syrup 87
Brown Rice Syrup (industrialized) 98
Glucose 100
Low GI vs High GI Sweeteners
After looking at this chart, you may be thinking, “Xylitol and agave have a very low glycemic index. Why not use those?”
The problem is that xylitol and agave nectar are both very highly processed. It’s not just the glycemic index that comes into play when selecting a sweetener, but how it is made that needs to also be considered.
What about stevia and brown rice syrup? Those are both good options, but practically speaking, they don’t work well for all baking situations.
Palm sugar is much more versatile and is easily substituted for cane sugar in baking recipes 1:1. Thus, I find it a practical as well as a healthy choice. It is sweet with no coconut flavor. Hence, there is no risk of drastically altering the flavor of a dish.
The ideal coconut sugar has been made using low temperature processing that involves evaporation of the sap from the coconut blossoms into crystals. Evaporation temperature is about 100F for an hour or two. As a result of this low temperature, enzymes remain intact.
Some coconut sugar manufacturers boil the nectar down to crystallize it, so check labels carefully or contact the manufacturer first if you desire raw coconut sugar.
Of course, moderation is key as with the use of all natural sweeteners – even coconut sugar. No more than 3 TBL per day (or 5% of total calories) or even a natural sweetener is a good rule of thumb.
Why Coconut Sugar is Good for the Environment
Unfortunately, misinformation about the sustainability of coconut and palm sugar has been making the rounds on the internet to the massive detriment of those earnestly seeking healthier sweeteners.
The article primarily responsible for promoting the notion that coconut sugar is unsustainable insists that coconut trees cannot produce both coconut palm sugar (derived from the nectar of the coconut blossom) and coconuts simultaneously. Moreover, the article states that the increasing popularity of palm sugar will cause the price of products like coconut oil, coconut flour, and shredded coconut to skyrocket because low-income coconut tree farmers will choose to use their trees to produce coconut sugar instead of mature coconuts.
Only the rich able to afford healthy and beneficial fats from coconuts because a growing number of consumers enjoy and use coconut sugar and coconut nectar?
Hardly!
Coconut Tree Tapping: The Reality vs the Hype
There are numerous, reputable sources that insist that the negative press about coconut sugar has completely missed the mark. Tapping a coconut tree for its sap is a century-old tradition. It does not harm the tree or impact the tree’s ability to produce coconuts.
Coconut palm trees are in high abundance throughout the world, most of which are not even being used for either sap or coconuts! They are a sustainable resource ready and available to be used!
There is no evidence that sap production is overtaking or even threatening coconut production. Coconut oil exports are booming from the Philippines, a top coconut oil exporter. Shipments for the first seven months of 2010 surpassed those for the entire 12 months in 2009. A slump in exports due to bad weather in 2011 (not rising coconut palm sugar sales) was followed by an expected rebound in 2012 of 12.3% for coconut oil and 21% for copra (dried coconut meat).
World Bank: Coconut Palm Sugar IS Sustainable
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the World Bank reports that coconut palm sweeteners are the single most sustainable sweetener in the world!
The reason is that coconut palms are a tree crop which benefits the environment ecologically. Their cultivation restores damaged soil requiring very little water in the process. In addition, coconut palms produce more sugar per acre than sugar cane (50-75% more). At the same time, they use less than 20% of the soil nutrients and water for that high level of production.
Besides the World Bank, the Philippines at the Davao Research Center demonstrated that it is possible to produce sap for making coconut palm sugar as well as coconuts from the same tree. All that needs to be done is to tap the coconut sap in the first half of the coconut blossoms. Then, allow the remaining half of the blossoms to develop into mature, 12-month coconuts. This method for tapping both sap and coconuts from the same tree yields 5-7 times higher productivity than traditional methods.
Trees Tapped for Palm Sugar Live a Long Time
Moreover, once a coconut tree is tapped, sap continues to flow for the next 2 decades or so. This is highly sustainable and obviously supportive of the tree itself else it would die.
The fact is that coconut oil and coconut sugar are both Traditional Foods. It isn’t a choice of one over the other as they have completely different purposes in the kitchen. Both are used and enjoyed in my home and there isn’t any reason why both shouldn’t be in yours too.
Learn More About Healthy Sweeteners
If you are seeking coconut sugar that is raw and also sustainable, click here for the brand I use in my home and feel very good about.
If you wish to learn more about healthy sweeteners, check out the linked article for an in depth video discussing the alternatives.
Sources
University of Sydney Glycemic Index Database
High Fructose Cane Syrup and Sugar
Coconut Palm Sugar Sustainability
The Many Shades of Palm Oil
FAO: Towards a more diversified and sustainable agriculture
Setting the Record Straight: Coconut Sap vs Oil Production
Coconut oil exports soar
More Information
Agave Nectar Alternative
Avoid the Sugar Alcohols to Protect Gut Health
Sara I bought madhava sugar I was reading the back of it it says cooking the sap not dehydrated it’s called madhava clean & simple I didn’t realize it was different from the madhava I normally get unless they changed things have you notice this or no about it if they make 2 different kinds then readers need to know very sad about this and mad
Thanks for the heads up! Manufacturers are always playing these kinds of games to make money off cheaper versions of a trendy product.
I thought the University of Syndeny GI calcualtor was the authroty of GI? I have seen a lot of promotional staticsts for coconut sugar being in the 30’s and this is usually sponsored by countries that have a coconut export industry! I think it is really misleading that people are saying that coconut sugar is low GI. It is basically the same structure as unrefined raw cane sugar.
I think it is very misleading to promote any kind of sugar as healthy. I would even say it is reckless, to use such words in a blog, who seems to give advice to less informed people. I have a degree in nutrition and with sugar, it’s all about the balance. Don’t get me wrong, i did not ban sugar from my meal plan, but i would never promote added sugar as healthy. Regarding that coconut sugar contains chemically seen almost the same mono- and disaccharides as regular table sugar. The small amount of nutrients and Inulin scarcely have any health benefits.
If your nutrition advice helps people getting conscious of the amount of sugar, they are eating – great. That should be the priority. But please, be precise, and do not call any type of sugar. Because it is not. The body does not care where the sugar comes from, the physiological pathways is the same since thousands of years.
Sincerely, Laura
Our body is meant to enjoy sweet otherwise we wouldn’t have sweet detecting tastebuds! In moderation, natural wholesome sweeteners are fine and healthy traditional cultures enjoyed them without any downside.
Hi Sarah, I am a little confused. I followed up on the Sydney GI database (listed on your website), and coconut has a GI of 54, not 30. Please clarify?
Thanks
Perhaps they have updated their data since I originally wrote the article and used refined coconut sugar? I have no idea, but it was 30 when I wrote the post.
Here is another reputable source that tests whole coconut sugar at a GI of 35 with an error range of plus or minus 4. http://pca.da.gov.ph/coconutrde/images/sugarpdfs/TPTrinidad_FNRI.pdf
Just be sure to get whole coconut sugar with all the minerals.
Sarah, I was glad to see you point out the 3 tablespoon rule, even for coconut or other natural sugars. I call it the 9 teaspoon rule – sounds like more! 😀 Since I post a lot of desserts on my food blog, I decided this week to put up a post about my take on sugar.
Hello, Amy! I love organic coconut sugar. It has become one of my favorite sweeteners. I always prefer coconut sugar because it is so easy to use and you can say it has a very earthy flavor. Anyway thanks for sharing great recipe blog.
Coconut Sugar sounds very healthy and so many health benefits. I really want to try incorporating it in my diet.Well Done.
I love cooking with coconut sugar. It has been an amazing recipe to use when cooking. That is my point and I actually like it more than regular sugar. It’s my favorite one.
COCONUT SUGAR has many health benefits.Adding our natural Coconut Sugar to your food preparations will prove to be the healthiest way of strengthening your digestive system.We should Keep our coconut sugar in air-tight containers and place them in a dry, cool place, away from moisture.Thanks for sharing.
MISCONCEPTION & MISLEADING ON COCONUTS SUGAR SUSTAINABILITY :
by: TROPICAL TRADITION – tropicaltraditions.com/coconut_palm_sugar.htm
THE FACT– PRODUCING COCONUT SUGAR HELPS TO PLANT MORE COCONUT TREES AND MORE THAN SUSTAINABILITY
Producing coconut sugar are requiring shorter coconut trees for easy climbing and less labor intensive. However the shorter coconut trees are very few in Philippines because about 9.5% coconut trees are tall to very tall, that’s why all coconut sugar processor can only produce small quantity. At ANDY ALBAO CocoWonder, we contracted coconut farmers to plant new coconut trees as many as possible, and planting must be continuously, because after few years, coconut trees will become taller and cannot be used for coconut sugar production, instead it can be added to our other tall coconut trees that used to produce whole coconut raw materials. This means, more coconut sugar to be produced, then more new coconut trees to be planted and more coconut trees will be available for whole nut production to produce more virgin coconut oil, coconut water and coconut four and among others.
DISADVANTAGE OF OTHER SWEETENER!
A. What They Say About Honey? – Honey is the same with White or Brown Sugar Cane and Corn Syrup containing high amount of Fructose and Glucose that contributes to increase blood sugar and become diabetics: READ MORE. In addition, honey is not Vegan:
B. STEVIA A WHITE POISON?
C. WHAT IS PALM SUGAR
D. AGAVE & CORN SYRUP dirty secret
READ MORE: cocowonder.com.ph/index.php/product-lines/coconut-sugar/bad-sugar