Acai Berries in Argentina?

[purpleyogi]

Acai Berry is this new superfruit that's in high demand everywhere in the world. Its grown in parts of South America, Argentine being one.

Has anyone spotted it in any of the stores in Buenos Aires?

 

[syngirl]

Acai berries, Goji berries, Noni Berries, it's all b.s.

Basically someone takes a fruit that's cheap to produce and is just as healthy for you as a cranberry or blueberry but it comes from a "mysterious" and 'far away" place in the world where amazingly the people live to 120 years old!

Worse yet, most of the time they take a berry that has a horrible taste and that has been generally considered a pesky weed for centuries and the crush it all up or blend it with sugar and TA-DAH a "miracle" juice or pill that will save your life.

Hmm... Noni, Goji, now Acai... I wouldn't be surprised if the same con artist is behind all of these.

Believe me, at one point we had a bunch of people asking us to design their websites for them to sell Acai berries, Goji berries, miracle juices etc etc. They are all pyramid schemes. They all promise weight loss and longevity for a mere, $40, $60, $80 dollars a month. They'll flatten your tummy, cure your cancer, improve your brain functionality etc. Then when you complain of no results they'll say it's because you need to supplement your Acai juice with Acai pills that run you "only" 1 dollar a pill -- except that to get "full benefit" you have to have 3 pills a day, so within weeks you're finding yourself spending $100s a month on SUGAR.

Even if these berries do actually do anything for you, your money is better spent getting real blueberries than powdered acai. The antioxident properties of berries are broken down with heating and processing, so you're best to get the real thing fresh or flash-frozen.

I get a million spams a day offering me Acai berries, if you check your junk box you've probably got them too. Buying off of one of them is going to give you the same result as buying Acai berries at the store -- absolutely nothing of benefit!

Want miracle anti-oxidents? Better off ordering frozen blueberries / raspberries / blackberries from the guy in Patagonia -- I'm sure it was mentioned on this site somewhere -- someone will have their info. You can also buy frozen blueberries at Jumbo.

 

[syngirl]

Sorry I just can't STAND these schemes, we've seen so many over the year of people wanting to make a quick buck by selling Gojis etc.

Here's something you should read before investing your money:

This past Monday, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has released a consumer warning, urging consumers to not fall prey to the viral ads of countless acai berry based products for weight loss, sexual dysfunction, cancers, and other ailments.

In the warning, the following is stated:

“There's no evidence whatsoever to suggest that açai pills will help shed pounds, flatten tummies, cleanse colons, enhance sexual desire, or perform any of the other commonly advertised functions.”

In a more light-hearted tone, David Schardt, the CSPI senior nutritionist said:

"If Bernard Madoff were in the food business, he’d be offering 'free' trials of açai-based weight-loss products."

http://www.obesitypanacea.com/2009/03/acai-berry-scam-exposed-we-called-it.html

and

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/23/acai.berries.scam/index.html

 

[John.St]

... They'll flatten your tummy, ...

Obviously they will flatten something - namely your wallet

 

[perry]

Syngirl great post and agree with you 100 percent. There are excellent berries in Argentina that you can eat raw ie Blueberries or Raspberries and they are wonderful for your health but in their pure form.

The best way of losing weight is always cutting down on calories and exercising . It aint no rocket science.

 

[purpleyogi]

I wasn't interested in the powders of course. I was just curious if we can get those fruits somewhere in BA just like blueberries or strawberries....
And I got more than I asked or hoped for..... phew!!!!

 

[Celia]

A big fave here is chia seeds. I see loads of people buying them...
You could try dietetica viamonte, http://www.dieteticaviamonte.com.ar/ they might know if you give them a call.

 

[EvergreenGal]

From my reading up on Acai...it is a superfruit and has one of the highest levels of antioxidents you can get...but most of the juices sold are all sugar...so you just need to know your sources when you purchase...it's the old buyer beware!

There are good companies out there that sell this...do your homework and you will be fine.

I have yet to look for it here..but was looking at getting a supplement from a very respected company in the states.

**Chia is great for high blood pressure....a couple of tablespoons in water and mixed up...it kind of gets gel like. It has helped me!

 

[Grazie]

purpleyogi, if you are looking for the fruit, I believe they are inedible (can be toxic in hig amounts) in its natural form (freshly picked). If you are looking for it for its anti-oxidant properties - fresh fruits are the best alternatives to these, namely blueberries (they are great - the ones from Argentina) Now if you are looking for them for its appetite suppressant properties, it is best to have them in its TEA form and usually in the tea-bag blended with another fruit or herb to balance the taste (acai is a very potent fruit).
There are several tea mixes out there that have acai as an ingredient the trick if finding one that your palate can take. Jumbo in Palermo can be a plausible source (imported section).
I have tried it and I would say just for variation to the usual run of the mill choices of libation around here - it is pretty good. Suerte!