Coconut Sugar Export Data: Why Origin Figures Are Estimates

Coconut sugar here means the sap sweetener from Cocos nucifera blossom — a palm sugar unrelated to palm oil and distinct from Arenga pinnata gula aren. This page is the dated trade-data slice behind our Indonesia vs Philippines coconut sugar origins origin comparison, holding the raw export-share figures — Indonesia origin, Philippines origin — the comparison memo turns into a sourcing decision.

1. Coconut sugar export figures by origin, dated

The table gives the closest official export figures for the two focus origins plus the matching US import line — dated figures, not undated leaderboard lifts, with each cell naming its basis, source and data window.

Origin, export volume, destination share, source and data window

The one coconut-sugar-specific official figure we could source is regional and older: Yogyakarta gula kelapa / gula semut exports of 311 tonnes (Rp 19.27 billion) in Jan–Mar 2020, led by the United States (Direktorat Jenderal Perkebunan, Indonesia Ministry of Agriculture) — scoped, not a national volume.

2. How to read these figures

These figures are directional, not precise: with no standalone trade code, every country number is an estimate that shifts with the data window and classification basis. The sections below separate the one durable claim — the US destination — from the volatile origin shares. Units differ too: commercial databases count export shipments (bill-of-lading records), not tonnes or dollars.

Coconut sugar has no standalone HS code

Coconut sugar has no standalone Harmonized System code. It is classified under HS 1702.90 (“other sugars”), on the residual line 1702 90 95 “Other”, alongside maltose, glucose, caramel and artificial honey. Any country export total drawn from HS data therefore bundles coconut sugar with unrelated sugars (UK Trade Tariff / WCO nomenclature, accessed July 2026).

Which country exports the most coconut sugar? No clean answer exists, because it is not separately coded. On the HS 1702.90 aggregate, Indonesia’s “other sugars” exports (~35,577 tonnes, 2023) dwarf the Philippines’ (~803 tonnes; UN Comtrade via World Bank WITS, 2023), supporting Indonesia as the dominant origin — though that line cannot rank origins precisely. Aggregate dashboards even show single-country “coconut sugar” totals in the billions of kilograms, impossible for sap tapped by hand from blossoms and a plain tell the series is the “other sugars” bucket. We do not reproduce those leaderboards as coconut-sugar figures.

The United States is consistently the #1 destination

The United States is coconut sugar’s single largest import destination. In 2023 it took about 61% of Indonesia’s HS 1702.90 “other sugars” exports by value — US$37.68 million of US$62.17 million (UN Comtrade via World Bank WITS, 2023). Indonesian agriculture-ministry data separately named the US the top market for Yogyakarta’s gula semut coconut sugar (Direktorat Jenderal Perkebunan).

Two independent bases point the same way — the 2023 aggregate trade line and the 2020 regional figure — so the US destination is the durable anchor while origin percentages are not. The US-reported mirror line (imports from Indonesia, ~18,395 tonnes / US$38.36 million, 2023; UN Comtrade) confirms the flow from the importer’s side.

Why origin shares shift by data window

Reported origin shares move with the data window and classification basis, so Indonesia’s origin share spans a wide band, not one fixed percentage. A bill-of-lading shipment count, an HS-value series and a tonnage series each measure a different thing. Treat any single percentage as one basis in one window.

What these figures do not tell you

• They do not isolate coconut sugar from other sugars — every HS 1702.90 number includes maltose, glucose and caramel.
• They fix no single “X% of world coconut sugar exports” figure; no clean percentage exists.
• They give no reliable year-on-year (YoY) change for coconut sugar — the aggregate moves for unrelated reasons.
• They are not price data; FOB and marketplace $/kg prices live in the price guide, not here.
• They do not certify a supplier’s origin or quality — that is verified at the factory, per lot, not by flag.
• They are not the USDA “Sugar” series, which covers centrifugal cane and beet only (USDA FAS report RP2025-0043, 2025).

3. How this table is maintained

This table is reviewed quarterly; every figure carries its own source and data window so you can see how current each number is. Figures are re-pulled from their primary sources on review, and the last-updated date bumps only when a figure or the method changes. We have completed 500+ export consignments and ship to around 8 markets, so we declare coconut sugar on real export paperwork, which is why the classification caveat above is first-hand, not theoretical.