Illipe Nut

Illipe nuts from various Shorea species.

Dayak children in West Kalimantan with the seeds of S. stenoptera.

Trucks loaded with illipe nuts waiting outside the C.V. Mentawi processing plant in Pontianak, West Kalimantan.

The seeds produced by several species of Shorea in Borneo contain an edible oil whose physical and chemical properties are remarkably similar to cocoa butter.  These seeds are known commercially as "illipe nuts", and large quantities are collected and sold internationally to be used in the manufacture of chocolate, soap, candles, and cosmetics. West Kalimantan exports tens of thousands of tons of illipe nuts. [NOTE: The triglyceride fractions in illipe nut oil occur in similar proportions to those found in cocoa butter, and the oil can be blended with chocolate without altering the texture, gloss, or taste of the original confection.  The higher melting point of illipe nut oil makes it especially useful as a chocolate hardener, i.e. so that it melts in your mouth, not in your hand].

Comments

[Quirijn Coolen]

Dear Sir,
I have been reading some of your blog archives with great interest.
Currently I am performing a Thesis research for the Sarawak Forestry Department on the potential of the Illipe nut in Sarawak, for my Bachelor degree at the Van Hall Larenstein University, the Netherlands.

I presume you wrote the Journal article; "Illipe Nuts (Shorea spp.) in West Kalimantan", but as I am not capable of finding the authors name on this blog, I cannot be sure. I would very much appreciate it if I can cite some of your blog stories with the authors name.

Any current information regarding the Illipe nut subject would ofcourse be very welcome.
Please get in contact,
Kind regards,
Quirijn Coolen