cohune palm

Also known as: Attalea cohune

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July 23, 2026

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The cohune palm, Orbignya cohune, is a commercially important palm tree native to western Central America, growing from the Yucatán Peninsula to Honduras. It is valued for its fruit, which contains kernels that are 65 to 70 percent oil. This cohune oil is a yellowish, semisolid fat used in cooking and soapmaking, with properties similar to coconut oil.123

Despite its value, commercial oil recovery has been limited due to the nuts' hardness, making them difficult to crack, and challenges in collection and transportation. The cohune palm plays a role in its ecosystem, contributing to soil profile development and fertility.14

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cohune oil
…fruits, or nuts, of the cohune palm tree, Attalea cohune. The tree grows in western Central America from the Yucatán Peninsula to Honduras. The oil’s properties, similar to those of coconut oil, have given it increasing importance. Because the nuts are unusually hard and difficult to crack and their collection…
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…fruits, or nuts, of the cohune palm tree, Attalea cohune. The tree grows in western Central America from the Yucatán Peninsula to Honduras. The oil’s properties, similar to those of coconut oil, have given it increasing importance. Because the nuts are unusually hard and difficult to crack and their collection…
Read More