US BUYERS WELCOME PERUVIAN COMPANIES WITH EXCITING EXOTIC FOOD INGREDIENTS
Six Peruvian companies are traveling together in a delegation to bring exotic functional food
ingredients to US buyers this Fall. They will attend the Supplyside West Tradeshow—a tradeshow
that focuses on the supply of ingredients that are used in the natural products markets in the US,
October 10-14 in Las Vegas, NV—and form a “Peruvian Pavilion” in hopes of meeting with food,
dietary supplement and cosmetic company buyers representative of the US natural products market.
As Peru is a land of diverse geographies and a world biodiversity hot spot, it has given rise to an
array of natural foods and botanical ingredients that are fuelling a culinary explosion in Peru and
garnering much interest from the US market for their health-giving properties and wonderful exotic
flavors. Among these ingredients are: camu camu, maca, purple corn extract, sacha inchi, and
yacón. Camu camu is an Amazonian fruit that has one of the highest vitamin C contents in the world.
Maca is a radish-like vegetable that grows high in the Andes and is thought to be the reason for
Andean people’s strength and relative high fertility rates. Purple Corn Extract is used in Peru to make
a delicious antioxidant packed drink. Sacha Inchi, also called Inca Peanut, is a tasty little nut with an
interesting source of omega-3 fatty acids. And yacón is a tuber that is the source of a promising low glycemic sweetener.
The Peruvian trade mission to Supplyside West is being supported by The International Trade Centre
(ITC), an agency of the United Nations focused at stimulating trade in emerging countries as a
means of poverty alleviation and biodiversity protection. The trade mission is also supported by
PromPeru, Peru’s export promotion agency.
“We have only just started talking to buyers about their interest in meeting with these Peruvian
companies, and so far the response has been very positive! Buyers love the idea of learning more
about these Peruvian ingredients and seem eager to make relationships with the Peruvian
companies” said Kerry Hughes, consultant for the ITC.
The Peruvian companies attending are: Peruvian Nature S&S SAC, Chakarunas Trading SRL,
Pebani Inversiones SA, Innovaciones Alimentarias SA, Amazon Health Products, and Zanaceutica
EIRL. Peruvian Nature is a sophisticated raw material supplier with the only organic steam
sterilization unit (OSS) in Peru, and they also have a distributor relationship with US-based
Nutraceuticals International, which allows them to easily send samples and service clients in the US.
Chakarunas Trading has been working with communities in both the Andes and the rainforest to
procure their ingredients, and in an effort to support the communities offer them free dental and
health services. Zanaceutica is focused at spray-dried extracts and precooked powders of the
ancient grains from the Andes. Beyond the hallmark Peruvian food ingredients, Pebani Inversiones
also carries interesting Peruvian oils that may be useful in cosmetics. Amazon Health Products is an
expert in sacha inchi, with several forms available, including the omega oil, healthy snacks and
protein powder. Innovaciones Alimentarias specializes in purple corn extracts and products—even
carrying purple corn beer, chili, and an energy bar!
To learn more or schedule a meeting with any of the companies attending Supplyside West, please
contact Kerry Hughes at kerry@ethnopharm.com, by phone at (707) 644-2354, or Bruno Paino at
painobru@gmail.com. To learn more abut the ITC or PromPeru, you may visit www.intracen.org or
www.promperu.com, respectively.
