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BACKGROUND:The acai palm (pronounced Aah-sigh-EE) is a type of palm tree that grows in South America. The acai fruit is a purple berry, similar to a small grape, and is harvested twice a year. The edible fruit is used throughout South America, but is particularly important to people living in the Amazon jungle. Mixed with other foods or consumed as a juice, it is rich in protein, vitamins and antioxidants. It also leaves people feeling full, which is why it is traditionally associated with low-income family diets.
All this has been changing over the past few years. Demand for acai has shifted to the food supplement industry in developed countries. Oprah Winfrey discussed acai on her show in 2008. Interest in acai quickly mushroomed, with it widely promoted as a weight-loss remedy, energy booster and age-defying potion. According to the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation, demand for the berries led to their wholesale price in Brazil increasing 60-fold in recent years. That may be good for producers, but it has transformed a staple part of poorer people’s diet into an expensive delicacy. Production cannot be increased quickly as acai trees grow best beside rivers and surrounded by different trees. Ironically, as those in developed countries consume acai to lose weight, those in South American jungles are losing one of their few affordable protein-rich foods.
