Camu-camu has 20 times more vitamin C than acerola, but is not explored

Research defines management culture of Amazonian fruit which, being too sour, is consumed in the form of ice cream, jellies and jams
Karin Solomon

(Fruit is common in the floodplains of the Amazon River in flood season)

The camu-camu fruit is small and weighs about 8g. Grows in floodplains of rivers, especially during the floods of Amazonian rivers. Only it's too sour and is consumed only in the form of ice cream, jellies and jams. Therefore, the production of camu-camu (Myrciaria dubious) in Brazil is still low.

Two researchers from Embrapa want to boost production of camu-camu and make production more efficient. After all, fruit is great source of vitamin C: outweighs the content of acerola and lemon 20 times in 100 times. The results were compiled in the pocket book The Culture of Camu-Camu.

The book is part of the Plant Collection, a collection of paperbacks Embrapa, and deals with various aspects concerning the management of camu-camu, such as the right conditions of climate, soil, means of propagation and cultivation. There is also information about nutritional value, harvest, processing, storage and industrial performance. The edition also illustrates how to identify fruits and branches attacked by insect pests.

(On dry land, the bush does not get to have more than eight feet high)

The fruit is widely used by pharmaceutical companies to manufacture vitamin capsules, according Walnice Birth, one of the co-authors of the book. "Camu-camu has great potential yet to be explored in Brazil," she says, which divides the authorship of the publication to the researcher José Urano de Carvalho, both of Embrapa.

In Brazil, it is grown mainly in Pará, Amazonas and some farms in São Paulo, and Mirandópolis Iguape. Although the country is incipient culture, Peru is a major producer and exporter of the fruit. From there, the camu-camu is exported to Japan, United States and the European Union, through the Netherlands.

Still somewhat tamed, the plant has a production as efficient. Being a lowland plant, it is also not fully adapted to solid ground. The improvement by selection, in Brazil, began only in 2008. Since then, there have been several studies of the chemical fruit in several Brazilian universities. Currently, Embrapa is also analyzing selected varieties genetically.

Ten Embrapa scientists - chemical engineers, breeders, crop managers, plant pathologists, geneticists and nutritionists - work with this production. The book was the result of several tests of cultivation and compilations of other works, mainly Peruvians.

Book site: http://vendasliv.sct.embrapa.br/liv4/consultaProduto.do?metodo=detalhar&codigoProduto=00052700

Source: http://revistagloborural.globo.com