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Parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) coupled with support-vector machine (SVM) was carried out to identify and discriminate between the fluorescence spectroscopies of coconut water brands.

PARAFAC was applied to reduce three-dimensional data of excitation emission matrix (EEM) to two-dimensional data. SVM was applied to discriminate between six commercial coconut water brands in this study. The three largest variation data from fluorescence spectroscopy were extracted using the PARAFAC method as the input data of SVM classifiers.

The discrimination results of the six commercial coconut water brands were achieved by three SVM methods (Ga-SVM, PSO-SVM and Grid-SVM). The best classification accuracies were 100.00%, 96.43% and 94.64% for the training set, test set and CV accuracy.

The above results indicate that fluorescence spectroscopy combined with PARAFAC and SVM methods proved to be a simple and rapid detection method for coconut water and perhaps other beverages.

Of milk alone no less than 36,000 samples were purchased during 1904, almost as many as the total for all articles 10 years ago. Of these 4,031 (or 11.1 per cent.) were returned as adulterated. In the previous year 10.4 per cent. were condemned. The difference is not of necessity due to any increase in adulteration, as the figures are admittedly inaccurate owing to the differences of procedure on the part of Public Analysts in making out their reports. In support of this view it is mentioned that in 14 Metropolitan Districts where 6,270 milks were examined, 4.9 per cent. were reported as containing percentages of added water under 5 per cent., while in 15 other districts, where 3,205 samples were submitted, only 0.56 per cent. were returned as being adulterated to this extent. The explanation is that in the former case the Public Analyst adhered more or less rigidly to the standard fixed by the “Sale of Milk Regulations,” while in the latter, in most instances, where the amount of adulteration was under 5 per cent., the samples were reported as genuine. Here the Report takes what is a more or less new and certainly welcome departure, in definitely expressing an opinion for the guidance of those in doubt, and stating that so long as the “Sale of Milk Regulations” remains in force, “Public Analysts have no warrant for the adoption of a still lower standard.”

The paper aims to understand how Eastern spiritual and Western secular traditions coexist in the US commercial marketplace and what lessons spiritual messages of Eastern wisdom offer Western consumers.

The paper uses qualitative methods by engaging in close reading and analysis of the narratives on food and drink packages that have a direct reference to Eastern spirituality in the form of symbolic Eastern vocabulary and images.

The paper proposes that artful sacralization of the spiritual to brand the mundane is an additional mode of cultural production used by marketers, and that this proposed mode extends the two modes (sacralization of the mundane and commodification of the spiritual) reported in previous studies.

The relationship between Eastern spirituality and Western commercialism deserves more in-depth studies. For example, how does the Western treatment of Eastern spirituality affect its perceived authenticity and purity? Finally, what do the newly wise Westerners do with mastery of an Eastern science of life?

This work finds Western supermarkets to be emerging channels of Eastern spirituality. The author argues that narratives on food and drink packages perform as carriers of Eastern wisdom.

The author also finds that the borrowed spiritual wisdom of the East has yet to be reconciled with the prevailing secular norms of Western society.

This has been the first known academic attempt to explore the spiritual connotation of the labels on branded food and drink packages sold in Western supermarkets.

In recent years, the use of earth as a material applied to construction has been adapted as an attractive alternative to modern concepts. The earth construction technique takes advantage of regional natural resources, among which are earth bricks. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of the addition of coconut fibers and aloe vera on the mechanical properties of compressed earth blocks (CEB).

CEBs were manufactured from silty and clay soil (Altamira, Tamaulipas, Mexico) with biodegradable stabilizers of aloe vera and short coconut mesocarp fibers, which were compared with the conventional mixture with lime as stabilizer. The samples were subjected to compression tests (Mexican Standard NMX-C-404-ONNCC3-205), flexion (NMX-C083-ONNCCE.), abrasion (NTC-5324 3.4.3), water absorption (NMX-C-37-ONNCE-205), surface morphology and thermal properties (ASTM D5334-14).

It was found that the addition of coconut fibers has a 12% difference in flexural strength. The addition of 0.5% of coconut fibers decreases swelling by 2% with water and reduces the thermal conductivity of the material by 12%. Likewise, this mixture increases the abrasion resistance of CEB by 30%. When there is a pressure greater than 1,700 psi in the CEB, the addition of coconut fibers does increase the compressive strength of the material, showing a 34% improvement over the CEB without adding coconut fibers.

The authors show a new sustainable CEB production with aloe vera and coconut fiber that is possible for self-production with better mechanical properties than others, commonly produced in Mexico.

This paper explores the institutional challenges and opportunities in Fiji's integration into the global value chain. Fiji is naturally endowed with coconut palms across its many islands. However, the coconut sector remains rudimentary with little value-addition. Coconut products of high-value are now being produced and exported throughout the world. While many coconut producing countries have benefitted from this coconut demand surge, Fiji has been unable to benefit from the international market.

This study utilizes a mixed-methods approach to analyze the challenges and opportunities. First, an analysis is done on a macro-level at the link between institutional quality and Fiji's export of coconut products. Then, primary data is collected with semi-structured interviews with key stakeholder groups in regions of Fiji. The goal is to gain an understanding of the perceived challenges and opportunities from each actor.

The empirical results show that institutional quality matters for Fiji's coconut exports. Increased scores in the government effectiveness and voice and accountability indicators enhance coconut exports from Fiji, suggesting that domestic institutions play an important role. Interviews with key actors reveal that communications among each stakeholder group are fragmented. The main institutional actors and the producers have different perceptions of the industry's challenges, thus resulting in different ideas on how to address the issues.

This study is limited by the data availability of coconut production and trade volume of more specific products. Furthermore, due to the transportation and weather constraints during our visit to Fiji, certain parts of the island were not accessible.

This paper uses a mixed-methods approach to assess a specific case study.

This study aims to conduct a systematic literature review to investigate the mental health problems during COVID-19 and the role of nutrition in minimizing mental and health-related issues during COVID-19.

A literature search was done electronically on April–May 2022 in the databases Google Scholar, PubMed and Cochrane Library, reviewing all the articles published in English. There were no limitations for the study (such as study design, region or any time frame). The quality assessment was done. The beginning database search picked out a total of 654 articles, 47 in PubMed, 575 in Google Scholar, 22 in Cochrane Library and 10 records from other sources. A total of 565 (duplicates found 89) were found after removing the duplicated articles, after reading the title and abstracts were further decreased to 88 full-text articles. These 88 studies went for full-text analysis, which excluded 56 studies and generated a final 32 articles for systemic analysis. The quality of the included study for the systematic review was assessed in two ways: one is evidence-based and another one on the JBI checklist.

People in social isolation and home quarantine suffer from severe anxiety, stress, depression, loneliness, anger and panic attack. During COVID-19, the vital role of diet and nutrients in mental health has been acknowledged and helps mitigate COVID-19 infection. Many studies showed stress and anxiety due to increased unhealthy eating and lifestyle practices.

This review will explain the interlink between diet and mental health because what we eat and think is interconnected with the gut–brain axis. The dietary elements and psychobiotic help in improving the immune system and psychological distress during the pandemic. This paper describes the role of different nutrients, psychobiotics and phytochemicals, to minimize mental and health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper also contains a balanced diet plan to withstand COVID-19.

The objective of this work is to study the fatty acid profile of coconut oil in the kernel in relation to maturity of the nut and season of fertilization in five selected varieties of coconut.

The coconut oil from the popular cultivars/hybrids were studied in post‐monsoon, pre‐monsoon and monsoon seasons at 7, 8, 10 and 12 months after fertilization.

Nuts that fertilized in the post monsoon season were found to have higher oil contents. Of the five varieties, COD×WCT had lesser amounts of caprylic, capric and lauric acids and greater amounts of the long chain fatty acids. Though significant differences were observed in fatty acid concentrations in nuts differing in their variety and season of tagging, the trend remained the same.

The study helps to ensure the safety of the usage of coconut oil as dietary oil, from the nature of fatty acids present.

Increasingly, interest in and the uptake of herbal infusions has advanced, namely, owing to their bioactive properties and potential links to health. Given this, the purpose of the present review was to collate evidence from human trials for five popular herbal infusions.

The systematic review comprised ten human trials (560 participants), investigating inter-relationships between herbal infusions consumption and health. Only human studies involving German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L. Asteraceae), ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe Zingiberaceae), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L. Lamiaceae), peppermint (Mentha x spicata L. Lamiaceae)/spearmint (Mentha spicata L. Lamiaceae) and rosehip (Rosa canina L. Rosaceae) teas were included in the present paper.

Most herbal infusions serve as a good source of flavonoids and other polyphenols in the human diet. Studies included in this paper indicate that herbal infusions (1-3 cups tended to be drank daily; infusion rates up to 15 min) could benefit certain aspects of health. In particular, this includes aspects of sleep quality and glycaemic control (German chamomile), osteoarthritic stiffness and hormone control (spearmint), oxidative stress (lemon balm) and primary dysmenorrhea (rosehip).

Ongoing research is needed using homogenous herbal infusion forms, brewing rates and volumes of water to further reinforce these findings. In the meantime, herbal infusions could provide a useful supplementary approach to improving certain aspects of well-being.

The present paper collates evidence from human trials for five popular herbal infusions.

This study analyses how latent variables: environmental hostility, entrepreneurial orientation and dynamic capabilities are demonstrated in practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Coming from mixed-method research, which is an explanatory sequential research design; this paper aims to provide only the qualitative, practical manifestations and validations of the variables previously tested and analysed quantitatively.

A case study approach was used whereby open-ended, semi-structured series of interviews was conducted to extract narratives from two owner–managers of medium-scale manufacturer-exporter agro-processing firms in the Philippines. Thematic analysis using deductive reasoning was used to analyse the collected narratives.

The analysis showed qualitative evidence of a possible intervention of entrepreneurial orientation and dynamic capabilities between the effects of the hostile environment brought about by the pandemic on the firms’ export performance. In addition, organisational resilience was observed to possibly moderate the relationship between the firm’s entrepreneurial orientation and dynamic capabilities. Resilience takes time (years) to develop; with an entrepreneurial behaviour, a continuous enhancement and acquisition of resources, capabilities, knowledge reflects a robust and adaptive organisation during adversity.

The role of education and research institutions was highlighted in the development of dynamic capabilities of firms. The entrepreneurial resilience, however, reflects the individual characteristic of the owner–managers that manifests in the firm’s overall posture toward the overall goal of protecting the industry from its downfall.

Qualitative evidences composed of direct experiences from key informants served valuable and contextual (Philippine agro-processing industry) validations to the theoretical relationships of variables being analysed.

The aim of this study was to compare the organoleptic attributes and meltability of selected, commercial dairy-free imitation cheeses (DFICs) with those of their dairy counterparts to thus determine whether commercial DFIC needs to be further developed.

Market research was conducted to determine the availability of DFICs in the United Kingdom (UK) and thus select the varieties to assess. Mild cheddar was chosen for its popularity wide availability in the United Kingdom and Italian-style hard cheese for its complex organoleptic profile. The organoleptic attributes and melting properties of the chosen DFIC products were assessed by using descriptive sensory evaluation and their meltability was assessed using the Arnott test, respectively.

109 different DFICs were found; most of them (74%) presented coconut oil as their primary ingredient. None of the assessed DFICs assessed could mimic the organoleptic attributes of their dairy counterparts accurately; however, one of the non-dairy mild cheddar samples was regarded as potentially acceptable by the assessors of the sensory evaluation assessors. Nonetheless, the meltability of this sample was significantly lower than that of mild cheddar cheese.

The findings indicate that, to obtain products that can mimic the organoleptic attributes and meltability of cheese more accurately, further development is required for the DFIC varieties assessed.

No academic publications have explored and investigated commercial DFICs with similar ingredients to those found in commercial DFICs; the commercial importance of these products may augment in the short term owing to the reported growth in the number of vegan individuals in the UK and in Europe.