What fruits are original from Brazil?

QUESTION Alexandre Gomes Freitas, Rio de Janeiro, RJ

It is estimated that there are at least 312 typically Brazilian fruits. This is because many fruits considered “the face of Brazil”, such as bananas and oranges, are not native to Brazilian lands.

“But, despite the impressive number, only six Brazilian fruits are grown commercially on a large scale”, says agronomist Harri Lorenzi, co-author of the book Exotic and Cultivated Brazilian Fruits (check out the six fruits below).

The list of non-commercial Brazilian fruits has names you’ve probably never heard of, such as banana-de-macaco, marôlo, araticum-cagão, taperebá, cariota-de-thorn, pau-alazão, maharajá and fruit-de-ema, among others. others.

Some of these exotic fruits are registered outside Brazil, which does not nullify the green-yellow originality, but leaves the country out of eventual monetary gains related to the fruit trade.

There are also extinct fruits, such as the oiti-da-baia, one of the favorites of Emperor Dom Pedro II, which no longer exists today.