Camu Camu - Requena

Last February, Mrs. Mónica Rivas (my wife) and me, Miguel Macedo, Peruvian researchers from the Peruvian Center of Social Studies went to the Peruvian Amazon to study the Camu Camu value chain. We finished the research about the information
requirements for camu camu producers in Requena Province (Loreto) on the Peruvian
Amazon.

The camu camu is a exotic amazon fruit, it has the most C vitamin between all
fruits in the world per cubic centimeter or other unit. Japan is the unique
buyer of camu camu in the world, Peru produces it but this fruit is not in
the diary diet of the Peruvians, it is eating in the Peruvian Amazon losing
many of the benefits of this fruit.

Requena is a province located in Loreto Region (1 of 25 regions in Peru).
Since 3 years ago the regional government has started a financial system to expand the production of camu camu, and Requena is one of the province that is involved
with 300 producers. Many of them are poor and their principal economic
activities are agriculture and commerce, but they don’t have in the short run
a domestic or external demand. At the end of the year they will have their
first harvest and the internal market is dominated for 5 groups whom buy the
total production and process it for domestic consumption or for export it to
Japan (3 of them are japan traders).

In our study we found that the camu camu production in the peruvian amazon will be the historical record in the quantity of 1 to 10, but the market structure wont be able to absorb the whole production, this will cause a gap between supply and the common demand. Just Lima and Tokio represent the 80% of the actual global demand, but at the end of the year, who will consume the exceed?.

This situation only will benefit to the traders and the few pulpa producers (there are few camu camu pulpa producers in Peru, just 5) but not the large number of little camu camu producers, because the exceed supply will fall down the prices.

The loreto government plan does not have any solution in the short run, may be making growing up the efforts to continue the camu camu promotion overseas could be mitigate the possible bad results, expanding the demand, but in a realistic vision, it could be solved in the middle run, but not in this end of the year.

But if any interesting person o corporation would be interesting, our suggestion is contact directly with the camu camu producers. It could help to increase their incomes reducing the distance between yours and the producers, you can get camu camu with a better price than the traders price.


Our best regards.

Monica Rivas;
Miguel Macedo

Researches
Peruvian center of social studies
Lima Peru
Salaverry avenue 818 – Jesus María
Tel: 511-4336610
www.cepes.org.pe