From excellent football skills to the Rio de Janeiro carnival, Brazil, is at the heart of South America and , is known for a lot of things worldwide. Brazil also has the ideal climate conditions which allows for a vast array of fruits, vegetables and nuts to be cultivated to great effect. It is therefore not a massive surprise that after China and India, Brazil is the third largest fruit exporter in the world. Its main importers are the Arabic countries of Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates.
Europe also buys substantial quantities of Brazilian fruit. The fruit grown in Brazil ranges from relatively common varieties, such as apples and mangos, to more exotic types like the acai . Whilst the more popular fruit makes up the majority of Brazil’s production, fruit like acai is becoming more well-known and liked by the western population .
Acai (pronounced ass-eye-ee) is a nutritious purple berry said to taste like a combination of chocolate and berries. It is now found in a multitude of products from juices and smoothies, to cosmetic products. These berries contain antioxidants called anthocyanins which may help to fight against the effects of free radicals which can cause damage to cells1.
Another delicious fruit that is grown in Brazil is the delicious mango. It is oval-shaped, and has a super-sweet taste. You’ll know it is a mango if you see yellow flesh, and a yellow-green skin. Like the acai berry, the nutritional content of mangoes is high: it can provide a substantial proportion of your recommended daily allowance of Vitamin C, A and E as well as fibre and iron3.
1 Cancer.About.com (2009). Antioxidants and Cancer. http://cancer.about.com/od/alternativetreatments/a/antioxidants.htm
2 Astrology Zine (2009). Acai Berries for Cardio Health and Anti-Aging. http://www.astrologyzine.com/acai-berries.shtml
3 I Love India (). Benefits of Mangoes. http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/benefits-of-mango-1428.html