Espécies de frutas amazônicas : potencialidades e desafios da bioeconomia no município de Benjamin Constant

Abstract

Fruit species played a key role in feeding and source of income for indigenous people in Alto Solimões, contributing to the conservation of the biome. The present study was carried out in the municipal market of Benjamin Constant, which aims to encourage the participation of small traders and producers in the supply, also benefiting local producers in the municipality and communities. Thus, this study aims to discuss the relationships between potentialities and difficulties in production, consumption and commercialization of fruit species (cupuaçu, mapati and pupunha) in Benjamin Constant. This is a qualitative, exploratory, bibliographic and action-research study. The use of fruit species in the municipality of Benjamin Constant, mainly in the municipal market, presents great potential, due to the seasonality of fruits throughout the year, since producers/marketing agents are able to sell several different fruits throughout the year. . Despite this, the use of the questionnaire as a data instrument applied to the stallholders, made it possible to know the production challenges and opportunities that fruit growing has in the market. Cupuaçu represents a productive activity that intertwines family work relationships as it is an important crop for small and medium-sized producers in the northern region. The Amazonian grape or mapati is a fruit species that is especially popular among the Ticuna people of Brazil, who produce large amounts of fruit in grape-like clusters. The demand for the fruit is only for consumption in natura, but the fruit has potential for the extraction of wine, juices and sweets. Finally, peach palm is a species that has a high potential for the production of functional foods because it has important bioactive compounds in its composition, it replaces bread for breakfast for many Amazonians, as the fruit has numerous nutrients, and is also used for the production of flour and caiçuma, products that are not marketed in the region. However, a portfolio was built in order to display all the work from the plantation to the processing of the fruits that were studied, aiming at the appreciation of traders / marketing agents, the portfolio was published on digital platforms, and was also printed for distribution to Benjamin Constant.