Hearts of Palm: benefits and sustainability

What are Hearts of Palm

The Heart of Palm, also known as Palmito, is a vegetable harvested from the inner core and growing bud of certain species of palm trees, in particular a variety known as peach palm. The heart peach palms is the one most widespread used for canned products.

After harvesting, the hearts of palm are cut into cylinders or sliced into rings and packed in water or brine. They look like smooth, thick white asparagus spears and are often said to taste like artichokes. The delicate flavor of hearts of palm makes them a popular choice for salads, but they can also be braised, fried, or boiled.

Head of Palm for nutrition: what are the benefits of palm hearts

In addition to their versatility on the plate, hearts of palm are nutritional powerhouses. The palmito is an innovative food with a great nutritional contribution:

● fiber

● potassium

● iron

● zinc

● calcium

● phosphorus

● copper

● vitamin B2 and B6

● vitamin C

Is eating hearts of palm bad for the environment?

The laborious harvesting process involves cutting down the trees and carefully removing the bark and other fibers until only the tender heart remains. Not all species are sustainable, because some of them die after harvest.

However, the species used to obtain this type of product are the multi-stemmed palms, like peach palms. The fact they regenerate every two to three years, makes them a more environmentally-friendly and a sustainable option.

The hearth of peach palm consumption and commercialization for local economies, have several implications all over the world. It presented evidence that the tree forms an important part of subsistence and commercial livelihood strategies in areas where it is cultivated. In the Peruvian Amazon more than 80% of farmers cultivate peach palm and consider it to be one of the most important species in their agroforestry systems, accounting for the second highest share of production volume after plantain.

Caynarachi and the Hearth of Palm Environmental monitoring, protection and sustainability is essential for Virù who is actively committed to upholding these values.

Caynarachi S.A. is a division of Virú S.A, Peru’s largest producer of canned product, and it aim to bring the world closer to the Peruvian Tropical region through those native vegetable products.

In 1000ha of surface of cultivated palms, it’s grown a native species known as “Piyuayo”, the peach palm, so Caynarachi S.A. deeply respect all guide lines about palm harvesting in order to keep total control of sustainability.

Caynarachi S.A. brings the world closer to the native products of the tropical jungles of Peru, by offering varied products, whose quality is always guaranteed.