Açai - Basic Description

admin — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 12:59:02 +0000

The Açai palm is a member of the genus Euterpe, which contains seven species of palms native to tropical areas, mainly from Central and South America, from Belize to Brazil and Peru, growing mainly in floodplains and swamps. Most of Euterpe are tall slender attractive palms growing to 15-30 meters tall, with pinnate leaves up to 3 meters long.

The Amazon region -mostly located in Brazil territory but also in Peru- is the area with the world´s highest production of acai fruit.

The species Euterpe oleracea is usually called Açaí Palm, where the açai berry comes from.

The Acai Berry, is a small, round, and black-purple drupe about 1 inch in diameter, similar in appearance and size to a grape, perhaps smaller and darker. The seed is large (7-10 mm in diameter) so the pulp content is minimum if compared with other berries. Th fruit is produced in branched panicles of 700 to 900 fruits. Two crops of fruit are produced per year.

Acai has a long history in Brazil. It has been used for many generations by the Caboclo natives and other tribes of Brazil, particularly into the Amazon rainforest area.

Acai berry has 10 times the antioxidant benefits of grapes and twice that of blueberries and its effectiveness are well demonstrated in several fields:

* Antioxidant
* Antibacterial
* Anti-inflammatory
* Antimutagenic
* Cardiovascular System

Hoodia California - Acai

Açai - Basic Description