Growing noni trees

Organic plant matter is rotted down in compost heaps then mixed with the volcanic soil of the Panamanian Rainforest. This rich, worm-worked compost, is used to plant the noni seeds harvested from previous seasons.

The seeds are thinned by hand and planted out into soft pots which are easy to remove when they are large enough to be planted out into their permanent plot on the plantation

 The saplings grow very quickly in the rich Panamanian soil, irrigated with water from natural pure mountain streams, and soon fill the space left between them on planting to create lush, green Rainforest cover.

The full grown trees allow enough freedom of movement between them to allow the fruit to be harvested whilst maintaining the lush, green, rainforest foliage when seen from the air.

Harvesting the noni fruit

Noni trees are grown in a similar pattern to that of European orchards or Mediterranean citrus groves but with less space in-between the trees. 

In the richness of the Panamanian soil, with the benefits of irrigation from fresh mountain streams and the rainforest climate, our noni trees grow extremely well and we maintain them in the best of health using organic methods. You can see here how glossy the leaves are on the trees and the health of the fruit.

Harvesting is carried out by hand by workers trained in personal hygiene, to prevent human faecal or other contamination.   This is important as the standards of some tropical fruit producers leaves many things to be desired.

 Fruit is picked dry. All fruit is picked from the tree; no fruit is used if it has touched the ground. Fruit visibly contaminated by bird droppings is left on the tree at harvest. The fruit is inspected when picked for insects or portions that have spoiled or bruised; all damaged fruit is discarded.

The noni fruit are picked when near, but not completely, ripe. At picking they are cream in colour, not green, but are still hard in texture to prevent handling damage.  Twigs and leaves do not normally enter the harvesting containers. There is no possibility of root material being present.  Receptacles for carrying fruit to the processing plant are washed daily using potable municipal water.