Açaí palm explained

The açaí palm (pronounced as /pt/, from Nheengatu asai), Euterpe oleracea, is a species of palm tree (Arecaceae) cultivated for its fruit (açaí berries, or simply açaí), hearts of palm (a vegetable), leaves, and trunk wood. Global demand for the fruit has expanded rapidly in the 21st century, and the tree is cultivated for that purpose primarily.

The species is native to eastern Amazonia, especially in Brazil, mainly in swamps and floodplains. Açaí palms are tall, slender trees growing to more than 25m (82feet) tall, with pinnate leaves up to 3m (10feet) long.[1] The fruit is small, round, and black-purple in color. The fruit became a staple food in floodplain areas around the 18th century,[2] [3] but its consumption in urban areas and promotion as a health food only began in the mid 1990s along with the popularization of other Amazonian fruits outside the region.

Name

The common name comes from the Portuguese adaptation of the Tupian word Tupi languages: ĩwasa'i, meaning "[fruit that] cries or expels water".[4] The importance of the fruit as a staple food in the Amazon River delta gives rise to the local legend of how the plant got its name. The folklore says that chief Itaqui ordered all newborns put to death owing to a period of famine. When his own daughter gave birth and the child was sacrificed, she cried and died beneath a newly sprouted tree. The tree fed the tribe and was called açaí because that was the daughter's name (Iaçá) spelled backwards.[5]

Its specific epithet oleracea means "vegetable" in Latin and is a form of (Latin: oleraceus).[6] [7]

Fruit

The fruit, commonly known as açaí or açaí berry,[8] is a small, round, black-purple drupe about 25mm in circumference, similar in appearance to a grape, but smaller and with less pulp and produced in branched panicles of 500 to 900 fruits. The exocarp of the ripe fruits is a deep purple color, or green, depending on the kind of açaí and its maturity. The mesocarp is pulpy and thin, with a consistent thickness of 1mm or less. It surrounds the voluminous and hard endocarp, which contains a single large seed about NaNmm in diameter. The seed makes up about 60–80% of the fruit. The palm bears fruit year round but the berry cannot be harvested during the rainy season.

Cultivation

There are two harvests: one is normally between January and June, while the other is between August and December, producing larger volumes.[9] In 2022, the state of Pará, which accounts for 90% of Brazil's total açaí economy, produced 8158t of açaí berries, generating US$26 million in revenue.[10] The 2022 production was 209 times greater than the volume produced in 2012.[10]

Child labor concern

Children as young as 13 years old are employed as laborers to harvest the fruit, using machetes to clear paths in the rainforest, and climbing trees up to tall without harnesses to collect berries in the canopy, a process leading to falls and severe injuries in some children.[10]

Cultivars

Few named cultivars exist, and varieties differ mostly in the nature of the fruit:

Anthocyanins

Anthocyanins define the blue pigmentation of açaí and the antioxidant capacity of the plant's natural defense mechanisms[14] and in laboratory experiments in vitro.[15] Anthocyanins in açaí accounted for only about 10% of the overall antioxidant capacity in vitro.[16] The Linus Pauling Institute and European Food Safety Authority state that "the relative contribution of dietary flavonoids to (...) antioxidant function in vivo is likely to be very small or negligible".[17] [18] [19] Unlike in controlled test tube conditions, anthocyanins have been shown to be poorly conserved (less than 5%) in vivo, and most of what is absorbed exists as chemically modified metabolites destined for rapid excretion.[20] [21]

A powdered preparation of freeze-dried açaí fruit pulp and skin was shown to contain cyanidin 3-O-glucoside and cyanidin 3-O-rutinoside as major anthocyanins (3.19 mg/g).[22] The powdered preparation was also reported to contain twelve flavonoid-like compounds, including homoorientin, orientin, taxifolin deoxyhexose, isovitexin, scoparin, as well as proanthocyanidins (12.89 mg/g), and low levels of resveratrol (1.1 μg/g).

Nutritional content

A powdered preparation of freeze-dried açaí fruit pulp and skin was reported to contain (per 100 g of dry powder) 534 calories, 52 g carbohydrates, 8 g protein, and 33 g total fat. The carbohydrate portion included 44 g of dietary fiber with low sugar levels, and the fat portion consisted of oleic acid (56% of total fats), palmitic acid (24%), and linoleic acid (13%).[23] The powder was also shown to contain (per 100 g) negligible vitamin C, 260 mg calcium, 4 mg iron, and 1002 IU vitamin A.[23]

Marketing

In the 1980s, the Brazilian Gracie family marketed açaí as an energy drink or as crushed fruit served with granola and bananas; this demand led to the building of cottage industries and processing plants to pulp and freeze açaí for export.

Scams

In the early 2000s, numerous companies advertised açaí products online, with many ads featuring counterfeit testimonials and products.[24] In 2009, açaí scams were ranked #1 on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's "scams and rip-offs" list, so that by 2011 sales of açaí flattened as the fad waned.

According to the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest thousands of consumers had trouble stopping recurrent charges on their credit cards when they canceled free trials of some açai-based products.[25] [26] In 2003, American celebrity doctor Nicholas Perricone included açaí berries among "superfoods", but such extravagant marketing claims regarding açaí as miracle cures for everything from obesity to attention-deficit disorder were challenged in subsequent studies.[27]

The FTC handed down an $80 million judgement in January 2012 against five companies that were marketing açaí berry supplements with fraudulent claims that their products promoted weight loss and prevented colon cancer. One company, Central Coast Nutraceuticals, was ordered to pay a $1.5 million settlement.[28] [29]

Production

Brazil is a major producer, particularly in the state of Pará, which alone in 2019 produced more than 1.2 million tons of açaí, an amount equal to 95% of Brazil's total.[30]

Uses

As a food product

Fresh açaí has been consumed as a dietary staple in the region around the Amazon river delta for centuries.[31] [32] The fruit is processed into pulp for supply to food product manufacturers or retailers, sold as frozen pulp, juice, or an ingredient in various products from beverages, including grain alcohol, smoothies, foods, cosmetics and supplements. In Brazil, it is commonly eaten as Portuguese: [[açaí na tigela]].

In a study of three traditional Caboclo populations in the Brazilian Amazon, açaí palm was described as the most important plant species because the fruit makes up a major component of their diet, up to 42% of the total food intake by weight.[33]

Açaí na tigela (known in English as açaí bowl) is a Brazilian dessert made from frozen açaí berry purée, served in a bowl and topped with other fruit and granola.[34] [35]

Dietary supplement

See also: Enforcement actions against açaí berry supplement manufacturers. As of 2008, no açaí products have been evaluated by the FDA, and their efficacy is doubtful.[36]

As of 2009, there is no scientific evidence that açaí consumption affects body weight, promotes weight loss or has any positive health effect.[37]

Açaí oil

See also: Açaí oil.

Açaí oil is suitable for cooking or as a salad dressing, but is mainly used in cosmetics as shampoos, soaps or skin moisturizers.

The oil compartments in açaí fruit contain polyphenols such as procyanidin oligomers and vanillic acid, syringic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, protocatechuic acid, and ferulic acid, which were shown to degrade substantially during storage or exposure to heat.[38] Although these compounds are under study for potential health effects, there remains no substantial evidence that açaí polyphenols have any effect in humans. Açaí oil is green in color, has a bland aroma, and is high in oleic and palmitic fatty acids.[39]

Other uses

Leaves of the palm may be made into hats, mats, baskets, brooms and roof thatch for homes, and trunk wood, resistant to pests, for building construction.[40] Tree trunks may be processed to yield dietary minerals.[41]

Comprising 80% of the fruit mass, açaí seeds may be ground for livestock food or as a component of organic soil for plants. Planted seeds are used for new palm tree stock, which, under the right growing conditions, can require months to form seedlings.[42] Seeds may become waste in landfills or used as fuel for producing bricks.[43]

Research

Orally administered açaí has been tested as a contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the gastrointestinal system.[44] [45] Its anthocyanins have also been characterized for stability as a natural food coloring agent.[46]

See also

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Palm trees. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. https://web.archive.org/web/20190518125026/http://www.fao.org/3/i2360e/i2360e04.pdf. 18 May 2019. live.
  2. Book: Working Forests in the Neotropics: Conservation Through Sustainable Management?. Zarin. Daniel. Alavalapati. Janaki R. R.. Schmink. Marianne. Putz. Frances E.. 2004. Columbia University Press. 9780231129077. en.
  3. Brondízio . Eduardo S. . Safar . Carolina A.M. . Siqueira . Andréa D. . 2002-03-01 . The urban market of Açaí fruit (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) and rural land use change: Ethnographic insights into the role of price and land tenure constraining agricultural choices in the Amazon estuary . Urban Ecosystems . en . 6 . 1 . 71 . 10.1023/A:1025966613562 . 1573-1642 . 25276291.
  4. Book: Ferreira, A. B. H. . Aurélio Buarque de Holanda Ferreira. . 2nd . Rio de Janeiro. Nova Fronteira . 1986 . 19.
  5. News: Acai – What is it and Where Does it Come From?. 2009-09-10. . 2018-06-20.
  6. Book: Parker, Peter. A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners. 2018. Little Brown Book Group. 978-1-4087-0615-2. 328. Latin: oleraceus, holeraceus = relating to vegetables or kitchen garden.
  7. Book: Whitney, William Dwight. The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia. 1899. Century Co.. 2856. Latin: holeraceus, Latin: oleraceus, herb-like, Latin: holus, Latin: olus (Latin: oler-), herbs, vegetables.
  8. Marcason . W. . What is the Açaí Berry and Are There Health Benefits? . 10.1016/j.jada.2009.09.017 . Journal of the American Dietetic Association . 109 . 11 . 1968 . 2009 . 19857637 .
  9. Web site: Worldwide demand for açaí is growing. Fresh Plaza. 1 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731185750/http://www.freshplaza.com/article/166322/Worldwide-demand-for-a%C3%A7a%C3%AD-is-growing. 31 July 2017.
  10. News: Vargas Jones J . Children in Brazil are climbing 70-foot-high trees so you can eat açaí berries . 13 March 2024 . CNN . 13 March 2024.
  11. Açaí Branco: Maintaining Agrobiodiversity through a Local Seed System in the Amazon Estuary . DuVal . A . Tropical Bulletin: Yale University Tropical Resources Institute . 29 . 2010 .
  12. Web site: Cultivar de açaizeiro BRS Pará – Portal Embrapa. www.embrapa.br. 2018-12-20.
  13. https://www.embrapa.br/busca-de-solucoes-tecnologicas/-/produto-servico/4707/brs-pai-degua---cultivar-de-acaizeiro-irrigado-de-terra-firme-?link-inicial Brazilian Agricultural Research Agency
  14. Web site: Plant Pigments for Color and Nutrition. Simon PW. 1996. Vegetable Crops Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI.
  15. De Rosso VV, Morán Vieyra FE, Mercadante AZ, Borsarelli CD. October 2008. Singlet oxygen quenching by anthocyanin's flavylium cations. Free Radical Research. 42. 10. 885–91. 10.1080/10715760802506349. 18985487. 21174667. 11336/54522. free.
  16. Lichtenthäler R, Rodrigues RB, Maia JG, Papagiannopoulos M, Fabricius H, Marx F. Feb 2005. Total oxidant scavenging capacities of Euterpe oleracea Mart. (Açaí) fruits. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 56. 1. 53–64. 10.1080/09637480500082082. 16019315. 10683560.
  17. Lotito SB, Frei B. 2006. Consumption of flavonoid-rich foods and increased plasma antioxidant capacity in humans: cause, consequence, or epiphenomenon?. Free Radic. Biol. Med.. 41. 12. 1727–46. 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2006.04.033. 17157175.
  18. Williams RJ, Spencer JP, Rice-Evans C. April 2004. Flavonoids: antioxidants or signalling molecules?. Free Radical Biology & Medicine. 36. 7. 838–49. 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2004.01.001. 15019969.
  19. https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.2903/j.efsa.2010.1489 Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to various food(s)/food constituent(s) and protection of cells from premature aging, antioxidant activity, antioxidant content and antioxidant properties, and protection of DNA, proteins and lipids from oxidative damage pursuant to Article 13(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/20061
  20. Web site: Flavonoids. 2015. Linus Pauling Institute, Micronutrient Information Center, Oregon State University. 8 June 2015.
  21. Manach. C. Williamson. G. Morand. C. Scalbert. A. Rémésy. C. 2005. Bioavailability and bioefficacy of polyphenols in humans. I. Review of 97 bioavailability studies. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 81. 1 Suppl. 230S–242S. 15640486. 10.1093/ajcn/81.1.230S. free.
  22. 10.1365/s10337-004-0305-x . 59 . Polyphenolic Constituents of Fruit Pulp of Euterpe oleracea Mart. (Acai palm) . 2004 . Chromatographia . Gallori . S.. 11–12 . 94388806 .
  23. Schauss. AG. Wu. X. Prior. RL. Ou. B. Patel. D. Huang. D. Kababick. JP. 2006. Phytochemical and nutrient composition of the freeze-dried amazonian palmberry, Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (acai). J Agric Food Chem. 54. 22. 8598–603. 10.1021/jf060976g. 17061839.
  24. News: Pressing Açaí foraçaí Answers. Ellin. Abbey. 12 March 2009. The New York Times.
  25. Web site: Oprah is coming after bad Internet Marketers. Adotas. 10 September 2009. 1 July 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100701235036/http://www.adotas.com/2009/08/oprah-is-coming-after-bad-internet-marketers/. dead.
  26. Web site: AG warns about deceptive weight loss supplement offer. King5 News. https://web.archive.org/web/20090831102735/http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_082609WAB-acai-berry-offer-warning-TP.1261bd61e.html. 31 August 2009. 9 September 2009.
  27. Colapinto. John. Strange Fruit. 2021-05-14. The New Yorker. en-US.
  28. News: Marketers of acai products fined $1.5 million for false claims and unfair billing. 9 January 2012. 2 November 2017. Consumer Reports.
  29. News: Internet Marketers of Acai Berry Weight-Loss Pills and "Colon Cleansers" to Pay $1.5 Million to Settle FTC Charges of Deceptive Advertising and Unfair Billing. 9 January 2012. 2 November 2017. Federal Trade Commission.
  30. Web site: Caminhos do açaí: Pará produz 95% da produção do Brasil, fruto movimenta US$ 1,5 bi e São Paulo é o principal destino no país . Jorge Sauma . Caio Maia . 15 March 2019. 13 March 2022. Globo . pt.
  31. Strange Fruit. Colapinto. John. John Colapinto. 30 May 2011. The New Yorker.
  32. Açaí pulp demand in the retail market of Belem, state of Para. de Santana. A.C.. Revista Brasileira de Fruticultura. 2017 . 39 . 10.1590/0100-29452017102 . free.
  33. Murrieta RS, Dufour DL, Siqueira AD. 1999. Food consumption and subsistence in three Caboclo populations on Marajo Island, Amazonia, Brazil. Human Ecology. 27. 3. 455–75. 10.1023/A:1018779624490. 150562421.
  34. Web site: Aislyn Greene . 2015-06-20 . The Surprising History of the Açaí Bowl . 2023-07-10 . AFAR Media . en.
  35. News: Kugel . Seth . 2010-02-24 . Açaí, a Global Super Fruit, Is Dinner in the Amazon . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-07-10 . 0362-4331.
  36. News: 'Superfood' açaí may not be worth price: Oprah's Dr. Oz says açai is healthy but no cure-all; Dieter feels ripped off. James. SD. 2008-12-12. 2008-12-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20081219035235/https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Diet/Story?id=6434350&page=1. 19 December 2008. live. ABC News.
  37. Web site: CSPI Warns Consumers about Web-Based Açai Scams. Center for Science in the Public Interest. 2009-03-23. CSPI. 2012-09-02. Center for Science in the Public Interest.
  38. Pacheco-Palencia LA, Mertens-Talcott S, Talcott ST . Chemical composition, antioxidant properties, and thermal stability of a phytochemical enriched oil from Açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) . J Agric Food Chem . 56 . 12 . 4631–6 . Jun 2008 . 18522407 . 10.1021/jf800161u .
  39. Arch Latinoam Nutr . 2007 . 57 . 1 . 94–8 . Characterization of the acai or manaca (Euterpe oleracea Mart.): a fruit of the Amazon . es . Neida . S . Elba . S. . 17824205 .
  40. Silva, S. & Tassara, H. (2005). Fruit Brazil Fruit. São Paulo, Brazil, Empresa das Artes
  41. Dyer, A. P. 1996. Latent energy in Euterpe oleracea. Biomass Energy Environ., Proc. Bioenergy Conf. 9th.
  42. Plotkin MJ, Balick MJ . Medicinal uses of South American palms . J Ethnopharmacol . 10 . 2 . 157–79 . Apr 1984 . 6727398 . 10.1016/0378-8741(84)90001-1 .
  43. News: Cheeseman. G-M.. How sustainability is embedded in Sambazon. 1 May 2017. The Guardian. December 2010 .
  44. Córdova-Fraga T, de Araujo DB, Sanchez TA . Euterpe olerácea (Açaí) as an alternative oral contrast agent in MRI of the gastrointestinal system: preliminary results . Magn Reson Imaging . 22 . 3 . 389–93 . Apr 2004 . 15062934 . 10.1016/j.mri.2004.01.018 . etal.
  45. Sanchez . Tiago Arruda . Elias . Jorge . Colnago . Luiz Alberto . de Almeida Troncon . Luiz Ernesto . de Oliveira . Ricardo Brandt . Baffa . Oswaldo . de Araujo . Dráulio Barros . September 2009 . Clinical Feasibility of Açai (Euterpe olerácea) Pulp as an Oral Contrast Agent for Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography . Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography . en . 33 . 5 . 666–671 . 10.1097/RCT.0b013e31819012a0 . 19820489 . 0363-8715.
  46. Del Pozo-Insfran D, Brenes CH, Talcott ST . Phytochemical composition and pigment stability of Açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) . J Agric Food Chem . 52 . 6 . 1539–45 . Mar 2004 . 15030208 . 10.1021/jf035189n .

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