Triple bottom line
From the beginning, Sambazon
has operated with that threefold premise. “When a triple-bottom-line business makes a profit,” Black explains on
the Sambazon website, “it’s a positive
experience for everything and everyone involved, from the Brazilian
Amazon rain forest which provides
amazing fruits and botanicals, to the
farmers who work the land and earn a
healthy living … and, finally, to our
customers, who ultimately use these
delicious powers to help further their
own health and wellness missions.
“We feel this is an awesome model
of how businesses should operate,”
Black continues. “Awesome” is a word
that often punctuates his comments.
But it does seem to describe what
Sambazon has accomplished.
“We now have more than 10,000
farmers organically growing açaí who
know how to sustainably harvest their
crop and know they have a steady and
fair market for their berries,” says
Travis Baumgardner, head of product
distribution, a Texan who joined
Black in 2001 after years of running
his own company that promoted sustainable rain-forest products in the
BERRY HEALTHY
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23
Brazilian market. He was instrumental in pioneering Sambazon’s highly
effective organic and fair-trade supply
chain. Among the changes brought
about by Sambazon:
; No longer are the farmers prematurely cutting down the açaí trees
in order to harvest the valuable
“heart of palm” that would bring 50
cents per tree, one time. Today, by
providing much higher and consistent prices for the berries, Sambazon
has made the trees too expensive to
cut down and shown these family
farmers how they can earn $8 per
tree per year while preserving the
biodiversity of the forest.
; No longer are farmers subject to
the chaotic and often manipulative
practices of the middlemen with whom
they traditionally had to deal in the
seedy open-air markets in Belém,
Macapá and other communities. Today
Sambazon works directly with the
farming families, paying them a fair-trade price well above the middlemen’s.
This gives families economic freedom
and the ability to plan their lives.
; No longer are the farmers harvesting every berry-laden frond from
the trees. Instead, they leave several
fronds on each tree to provide natural
Tablet or smartphone? You can watch a video of the company story in our digital newsstand and online editions.
seed stock for coming seasons. Açaí is
used as a regenerative species, meaning
it can reforest previously deforested
areas as well as serve as a buffer for
ancient forests. Sambazon’s technical
support has provided training for
countless family farmers.
; No longer is açaí processed
only in makeshift, less-than-sanitary
factories run by locals. Today,
Sambazon’s spotless manufacturing
facility, awarded the world’s foremost
food-safety certifications, ships com-mercial- and industrial-grade organic
superfoods to customers around the
Harvesting açaí
fronds now involves
leaving some on the
tree for future seed
stock (above).
Children at the
school Sambazon
helped build perform
Brazilian folk dances
to celebrate its
opening (right).
A potent nutritional mix SAMBAZON HAS MADE great strides in removing the stained reputation açaí once had due to over-the-top diet and nutrition claims made by earlier promoters. “During the last 12 years, the word ‘açaí’ has been used as a marketing ploy to attract customers to everything from weight-loss scams to multilevel marketing potions,” Sambazon CEO Ryan Black says. “Most of these products contained little actual açaí or were not properly chilled, resulting in poor smell, color and taste.” Black notes that açaí’s healthy omega fats are perishable and should be frozen or refrigerated at all times. (Costco offers Sambazon’s frozen açaí pulp, its refrigerated açaí beverage and its other Amazon superfood beverages.) Through the company’s efforts, açaí’s health benefits are now becoming accepted thanks to analyses and clinical stud- ies showing it contains a potent mix of natural elements. One study concluded that Sambazon’s juice had a glycemic index (GI) lower than most fruit-based beverages. Low-GI foods have been shown to help the body digest nutrients, reduce the risks of chronic diseases and minimize fluctuations in glucose and insulin levels. Like other low-GI foods, Sambazon’s açaí products release carbohydrates and energy benefits over time, eliminating the nergy rush associated with higher-glycemic foods.
Here are just a few of the components that make açaí a
health powerhouse:
; Oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat like that in olive oil,
which may reduce high blood pressure and increases
the flexibility of cell membranes, thereby possibly
aiding in slowing the aging process
; Polyphenolics, under investigation for
possiblydelaying or even preventing the progress
of Alzheimer’s disease
; Anthocyanins, believed by researchers to help
fight inflammation and promote healthy skin and hair
; Phytosterols, which help prevent arteries from
clogging by reducing bad cholesterol
; Omega- 3, - 6 and - 9 fatty acids, known for an
array of health and nutrition benefits
; Fiber, which is important for gastrointestinal
function and may reduce the risk of heart disease
; Protein
; Iron
; Calcium (as much as cow’s milk)
Amazingly, this nutritional bounty is contained
in less than 10 percent of the volume of the açaí
berry; 90 percent of the berry is its seed.—DWF
