Açaí palm
The Açaí palm (Assai palm) is a type of palm tree. There are seven different types of Açaí palms.[1][2] The tree grows in Central and South America. It has a black-purple fruit about the size of a grape called a euterpe. The seed inside is very big. The fruit grows in bunches of 700 to 900 fruits.
| Euterpe | |
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| Genus: | Euterpe |
| Binomial name | |
| Euterpe oleracea | |
The palms are mainly used for two things: First, salads called palmitos (heart of palm) can be made from the leaves; for this, the tree needs to be cut down. Secondly, the fruits can be made into a fruit juice that is said to be very healthy.
Images
The fruits on a market, in Belem
A typical serving of açaí juice
References
- Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
- "Euterpe oleracea". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved February 2, 2013.
Other websites
- Pictures of Açaí palms trees and fruit Archived 2006-01-17 at the Wayback Machine from an article by The Nature Conservancy.
- University of Florida study confirms that açaí berries contain antioxidants that destroyed cultured human cancer cells Archived 2014-04-08 at the Wayback Machine
- Jewelry made from Açaí seeds Archived 2009-09-03 at the Wayback Machine
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