The Acai Berry Super Fruit...!!!The Acai Berry
The Acai berry comes from the Acai palm which is a member of the genus Euterpe. This genus contains 7 different palm species, all native to the tropical regions of Central and South America. Many of these palms, however, due to the increase in studies and fueled by the growing popularity of these plants in the international health markets, have been reclassified into a more specific genus called Prestoea, with the species Euterpe oleracea being the one most commonly associated and described as the Acai Palm. From the northern most areas of Belize to the southern reaches of Peru and Brazil, this palm can be found growing in the floodplains and swamps of this lush dense tropical region. The Acai Palm can grow anywhere from 15 to 30 meters and can have leaves up to 3 meters long. The fruit from the Acai Palm is a small round, dark purple fruit and can grow to be about 1 inch in diameter. The fruit grows in clusters of 700 to 900 fruits with two crop yields of fruit being produced each year. As mentioned above, the exocarp of the ripe fruit is a deep color purple, and depending on the tree’s maturity and species, purity can also be found with shades of green. The mesocarp, or the inside of the fruit, is pulpy and thin with a consistency of thickness less than 1 mm. The fruits pulpy meat surrounds the seed, which could make up almost 80% of the fruit’s volume. The berry from the Acai Palm has been a main staple of food for the indigenous people of the Amazon Brazilian region for centuries and it makes up almost 42% of the total food intake of these native people. Over time, the juice and the pulp of the Acai fruit has been used in many different preparations making it very versatile in the way it is consumed. From its standard uses in juice blends and smoothies to its more complex uses as an ingredient in gourmet dishes and soups, this fruit has stood the test of time. With so much good coming from this one single source, there was bound to be a drawback. The most noted drawback to this fruit is its rapid deterioration after harvest. This generally means that the harvested fruit is usually only available outside the immediate growth region of the Acai Palm. However, because of advancement in the technology of plant harvest preparation technique and the ability of companies to open local processing plants, the exports of this fruit have exploded onto the international markets. The process by which the fruit is preserved takes place by either flash freeze drying the entire fruit or by freeze drying the extracted concentrated juice. The Acai Palm, however, is not just used as a food source. The leaves of this palm are used to make many household items such as baskets, hats, floor-mats, and even roof thatch for homes. And since almost 80% of the fruit’s mass is comprised of the berries seeds, many uses have also been found for this resource. For the most part, the seeds are ground up and used to make organic soil for potting plants and high-end topsoil as well as natural livestock feed. The seeds are also kept in a rotating stock to plant new palm tree farms, which have become a lucrative growing industry in the region due to the sudden increase in popularity of its fruit. As a nutritional source the Acai is, hands down, one of the most powerfully nutritious fruits known to man. For hundreds of years, the natives in the area have used this fruit in both traditional medicinal practices as well as spiritual ritual healing. However, it is only through modern research that the true medicinal potentials of this fruit have been truly realized. Recent studies have shown that the dense pigmentation of the Acai fruit demonstrates some of the highest levels of antioxidants recorded for edible plants. Much like the blueberry, these fruits containing dark pigments have also been found to be rich in flavonoids. The antioxidant properties of this fruit are not just found in the pulpy meat, but can also be found in the seed. Similar to other berries, the Acai fruit seed carries strong antioxidant components, many times just as much as the edible pulpy fruit, making this resource a valuable renewable recycling alternative nutritional source.
|
