The benefits of the Heart of Palm

GUYANA has the potential to capitalise on a growing international demand for the heart of the Acai Palm tree which is grown locally and sought after for its health benefits and multipurpose means of consumption.

The product is very famous in Europe where healthy eaters seek it out for its absence of cholesterol, glutton, fat and sugar as well as its high fibre and water content which makes it an all-round organic product.

It can be cooked as a vegetable, added to curry and used by itself as a salad or snack and is grown mostly on the Barima River in Region One.

Taking advantage of what many locals have overlooked, is Amazon Caribbean Guyana Limited (AMCAR) which calls the product ‘Acai Palmito’ which translates as ‘Heart of Palm’.
The botanical name of the tree is Euterpe Oleracea (EO) and the product which emerges from its heart is called by many names such as palm heart, palmito, burglar’s thigh, chonta, palm cabbage and swamp cabbage.

Managing Director of AMCAR, Christophe Sureau who is a French national, says the company invests much of its finances into promoting the product and the country from which it originates.

In an interview with the Pepperpot Magazine, he pointed out that in previous years the main talks surrounding Guyana have been its large gold reserves and now, with recent discoveries, the attention has shifted to oil.

SHOWCASING GUYANA’S NATURAL RESOURCES
Though important to the country’s development, Sureau was careful to remind that oil is a finite resource and is not enough to secure the country’s future forever.
For this reason, Amazon Caribbean believes that increased focus should be placed on the country’s natural resources and for over 30 years the company’s focus has been dedicated to exhibiting Guyanese products in cities within Germany, France and the United States.
Sureau told that in the sale and exhibition of the product. the company realised that it must first promote Guyana after observing that many foreigners still cannot properly pronounce or locate the country on the world map.
“Before you sell the product, you have to be able to sell Guyana and then you have to let them know the history of Guyana, how Guyana is beautiful, it’s not only Kaieteur Falls, for me the beauty of Guyana is in the rainforest as well as in the diversity of all the communities,” Sureau said.

Much of AMCAR’s viewpoint coincides with that of the Government of Guyana which has embarked upon a quest for a ‘green’ economy and both parties have collaborated at different periods.

However, not many Guyanese apart from some Amerindian communities and those living near the palm trees know about the product and its many uses.
Sureau says that because of this low level of awareness there is not a local market for the Heart of Palm which otherwise could be easily accessible to Guyanese.
“In Guyana, we have much more opportunities than just the local food market. Heart of Palm should be known in Guyana and my dream is to see more articles about our product because it is very famous abroad but not in Guyana,” Sureau lamented.
He believes that if Guyana and the Acai Palmito are to become better known there needs to be enhanced overseas exposure apart from local events such as GuyExpo and Uncapped or exports to locations within the diaspora.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
The first production of Acai Palmito began in the North West District located in Region One (Barima-Waini) in 1987, by a friend of Sureau’s father who later passed it on to Sureau (Snr.) who then passed it on to Sureau (Jnr).
“He [the first owner] heard that some Amerindian communities from Venezuela were coming to Guyana to harvest the Acai Palmito for factories in Venezuela and he thought ‘why not open a factory in Guyana’? Giving work to the communities around, so it started more as a social project,” Sureau explained.
When Sureau Jnr. arrived in Guyana in 1992, he came as a trainee to work at the North West factory for three months which would help to assist his business studies back in France.

However, after becoming mesmerised by the way of life and the many possibilities in the interior, Sureau quickly completed his studies and returned to Guyana to take up his father’s business full-time during which period he was also able to meet his wife.
Today, AMCAR has 160 employees, exports over 70 containers yearly, operates on a concession of 45,000 hectares and provides jobs and economic activity to over 500 Amerindian families in Guyana
A cordial relationship has grown between the company and community members who harvest the cabbage providing it to the company in return for rice, flour and other food items or cash, saving themselves the trouble of journeying out of the region to the towns.
Sureau who has been the owner of the company for nine years, is well-known in the communities where he says he prefers to spend most of his time rather than in the busy city of Georgetown.
“I don’t spend much time in Georgetown. Georgetown is just a business place but the real thing happens in the interior of Guyana,” he said smiling.

Challenges
However, as all businesses go there are several challenges which the company experiences which surround the high cost of logistics and energy in Guyana, one of the highest in the world.

On the other hand, Sureau observes that Trinidad and Tobago has one of the lowest costs of energy in the world which is why he hopes that with the budding petroleum sector, benefits will be seen in other important sectors.
Presently, Acai Palmito is the only product which is organic and Fair Trade Certified in Guyana which helps it to keep pace with its competitors in Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia and Brazil which all have lower energy costs.

Another challenge occurred some years ago when the company attempted to export pineapples in jars but was forced to abort the initiative due to an insufficient supply to run the factory which was located in Mainstay.

As such Sureau is calling on farmers who wish to invest in a chain of supply to the company to make known their interest as there are many opportunities for the export of juice, jam, dried fruits and more.

Meanwhile, the company’s next strategy is to continue working towards opening a local market, while preparing to showcase Guyana at expos in the US in September and in Paris in October the world’s largest food innovation and exhibition, SIAL.