Support Grows for Bioeconomy in Amazon
2023-09-01
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1Brazil's Amazon rainforest has long been home to small and mid-sized sustainable businesses.
2These companies use the area's nuts, fruits and other materials.
3Now there is a push to increase the number of those businesses.
4And a new term has come about to describe these kinds of businesses: "bioeconomy."
5Marcelo Salazar has a drink company called Mazo Mana Forest Food.
6The business partners with communities that live from the forest and gather the nuts, cocoa beans, acai, mushrooms, fruits and other ingredients that go into the drinks.
7They have received financial support from an investment group in Manaus, Brazil.
8The hope is that the bioeconomy counters an economy based on forestry and ranching.
9Leaders from Amazon countries used and heard the term repeatedly at an August meeting in Belem.
10The officials expressed interest for policies to protect the rainforest and provide paying work for tens of millions who live in it.
11However, beyond general support for the idea, there was little agreement about what exactly a bioeconomy should look like.
12Salazar was on a team chosen by Brazil's environment ministry to speak about the subject.
13The idea is not new. It is the latest term for sustainable development, also called the green economy.
14Besides the Brazil nuts and acai harvesters, people are making chocolate from native cocoa.
15There is a sustainable fishery for one of the world's largest freshwater fish.
16A community of rubber gatherers is helping produce shoes.
17"The challenge is scale," Para state Governor Helder Barbalho said.
18His state is believed to be the only in Brazil that has a complete bioeconomy plan.
19Para is Brazil's top producer of acai, yet its economy is far more dependent on iron ore exports to China.
20A large amount of land in Para is used by an estimated 27 million farm cows.
21The state emits more greenhouse gases than any Amazon country besides Brazil.
22But when it comes to larger sustainable companies, there are few success stories.
23The best example has been skin product company Natura.
24Twenty years ago it started a product line using ingredients from traditional Amazon communities and family farms.
25When the company started, local people were using ucuuba trees to make brooms.
26They greatly increased their earnings by leaving the trees standing and selling the seeds to Natura.
27The change helped conserve more than 2 million hectares of forest.
28Natura bought goods from 41 communities - home to 9,120 families - who in 2022 received about $9 million.
29Para State's plan for the bioeconomy names 43 forest products that could be exported, including acai, cocoa, cassava, pepper, fish species and essential oils for skin products.
30And the neighboring Amazonas state is creating a bioeconomy plan with financial support from the U.S. Agency for International Development.
31But some earlier efforts reveal problems.
32A state condom factory in the Amazon city of Xapuri opened in 2008.
33It was supposed to provide a market for hundreds of rubber-gathering families.
34But the factory closed 10 years later, after federal funding came to an end. Locals resorted to cattle ranching and today the area ranks high for deforestation.
35Cocoa beans have also caused problems.
36The trees can be a way to let forest grow back where it has been cut down.
37But its appeal in places like the Ivory Coast and Ghana has meant massive deforestation to make way for the trees that earn more money.
38Salazar, head of Mazo Mana, views his company as both social-minded and good for the economy.
39It keeps nearly 10 percent of its money for its partner community associations.
40Salazar thinks the sustainable companies that succeed and grow big will be those with a mission to solve the Amazon's problems.
41He says those companies will drive an economy that sees the value of the forest.
42I'm Dan Novak.
1Brazil's Amazon rainforest has long been home to small and mid-sized sustainable businesses. These companies use the area's nuts, fruits and other materials. 2Now there is a push to increase the number of those businesses. And a new term has come about to describe these kinds of businesses: "bioeconomy." 3Marcelo Salazar has a drink company called Mazo Mana Forest Food. The business partners with communities that live from the forest and gather the nuts, cocoa beans, acai, mushrooms, fruits and other ingredients that go into the drinks. They have received financial support from an investment group in Manaus, Brazil. The hope is that the bioeconomy counters an economy based on forestry and ranching. 4Leaders from Amazon countries used and heard the term repeatedly at an August meeting in Belem. The officials expressed interest for policies to protect the rainforest and provide paying work for tens of millions who live in it. 5However, beyond general support for the idea, there was little agreement about what exactly a bioeconomy should look like. Salazar was on a team chosen by Brazil's environment ministry to speak about the subject. 6The idea is not new. It is the latest term for sustainable development, also called the green economy. 7Besides the Brazil nuts and acai harvesters, people are making chocolate from native cocoa. There is a sustainable fishery for one of the world's largest freshwater fish. A community of rubber gatherers is helping produce shoes. 8"The challenge is scale," Para state Governor Helder Barbalho said. His state is believed to be the only in Brazil that has a complete bioeconomy plan. Para is Brazil's top producer of acai, yet its economy is far more dependent on iron ore exports to China. A large amount of land in Para is used by an estimated 27 million farm cows. The state emits more greenhouse gases than any Amazon country besides Brazil. 9But when it comes to larger sustainable companies, there are few success stories. The best example has been skin product company Natura. Twenty years ago it started a product line using ingredients from traditional Amazon communities and family farms. 10When the company started, local people were using ucuuba trees to make brooms. They greatly increased their earnings by leaving the trees standing and selling the seeds to Natura. The change helped conserve more than 2 million hectares of forest. 11Natura bought goods from 41 communities - home to 9,120 families - who in 2022 received about $9 million. 12Para State's plan for the bioeconomy names 43 forest products that could be exported, including acai, cocoa, cassava, pepper, fish species and essential oils for skin products. 13And the neighboring Amazonas state is creating a bioeconomy plan with financial support from the U.S. Agency for International Development. 14But some earlier efforts reveal problems. 15A state condom factory in the Amazon city of Xapuri opened in 2008. It was supposed to provide a market for hundreds of rubber-gathering families. But the factory closed 10 years later, after federal funding came to an end. Locals resorted to cattle ranching and today the area ranks high for deforestation. 16Cocoa beans have also caused problems. The trees can be a way to let forest grow back where it has been cut down. But its appeal in places like the Ivory Coast and Ghana has meant massive deforestation to make way for the trees that earn more money. 17Salazar, head of Mazo Mana, views his company as both social-minded and good for the economy. It keeps nearly 10 percent of its money for its partner community associations. 18Salazar thinks the sustainable companies that succeed and grow big will be those with a mission to solve the Amazon's problems. He says those companies will drive an economy that sees the value of the forest. 19I'm Dan Novak. 20Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press. 21__________________________________________________ 22Words in This Story 23sustainable - adj. able to be used without being completely used up or destroyed 24scale - n. the size or level of something especially in comparison to something else 25greenhouse gas - n. 26broom - n. a brush that has a long handle and that is used for sweeping floors 27condom - n. a thin rubber covering that a man wears on his penis during sex in order to prevent a woman from becoming pregnant or to prevent the spread of diseases