Sambazon Açai: Using Business to Create Positive Socio-Economic Change

By Ryan Black, CEO

In November 2011, the U.S.-based food company Sustainable Management of the Brazilian Amazon (Sambazon) joined the Business Call to Action with a commitment to train indigenous communities in the Amazon estuary region on sustainable harvesting of the açaí berry. Sambazon’s CEO Ryan Black writes about the origins of the company and its products.

From a surfing trip to a global opportunity

The journey began on a surfing trip to Brazil to celebrate the new millennium back in 1999. While hanging out with some local surfers, we had our first taste of açaí as a frozen, purple fruit slush topped with banana and granola. Amazed by the natural energy and nutritional benefits of this powerful fruit, we were quickly hooked. That first taste of açaí energized our bodies and stimulated our minds, and we learned that, if managed properly, açaí could generate sustainable livelihoods in the Amazon region where it is harvested.

That was indeed a big if. Constructing a certified supply chain from scratch in the middle of the Amazon rainforest for a wild-harvested fruit is no small feat. But we saw an incredible opportunity that could generate long-term, healthy jobs while simultaneously protecting forest biodiversity. Every berry harvested would inherently ‘do good’ and create a positive economic chain reaction.

Creating a sustainable supply chain

We learned that açaí berries are wild harvested from forests around the Amazon River estuary and transported by boat in baskets through a series of middlemen, changing hands several times before arriving at huge farmers’ markets in big cities. Changing hands so many times made origin and quality control practically impossible, and created opportunities for middlemen to exploit the small family farmers – forcing them to sell at lower prices than the cost of production.

Although it had never been done before, we realized that we could overcome these issues by cutting out the middlemen and establishing a direct relationship with small family farmers. With the help of Brazil’s most prominent NGOs and public resources including FASE.org.br, WWF Brazil and the Federal University of Para (Belem), we developed a sustainable agro-forestry program and sponsored the USDA Organic certification of a small group of farmers. From that pilot program in 2002, we have increased the number of participating farmers from 100 to the more than 10,000 from whom we currently purchase fruit. We also provide technical assistance, educational opportunities and social services.

In addition, we have assisted EcoCert, a leading certifying organization, in developing standards for certifying açaí as “fair trade”. This has provided us with a clear competitive advantage while the rest of the industry continues to purchase the fruit through middlemen. To complete our goal of vertical integration, in 2005 we built our own world-class açai fruit manufacturing facility on the banks of the Amazon River in Macapa. This facility gives Sambazon the ability to ensure the quality and certify the origin of all açai, and maintain a direct relationship with the certified organic and fair trade farmers.

Growing a triple bottom line business

As our supply chain was being developed in the Amazon, at home in the US we began another challenging task –building demand for a fruit no one had ever heard of with a difficult-to-pronounce name. We scraped together enough money to buy a container of frozen açaí pulp and some marketing fliers, and began convincing mom-and-pop juice bars in Southern California that açaí was “the next big thing”. We conducted endless samplings, demos and other events so that people could taste açaí and learn about the berry’s nutritional properties: açaí has more antioxidants than blueberries, healthy omega fats, fiber and protein. It also has virtually zero sugar.

By the end of that first summer of 2001, over 50 juice bars were selling branded Sambazon Açaí smoothies. We then began expanding all over the country by approaching the best juice bars in Miami’s South Beach, New York City, Boulder and Oahu’s North Shore. We made friends with top athletes like professional surfer Rob Machado and skateboarder Bob Burnquist. Bob helped us to convince the folks at ESPN to let us provide Sambazon Açai to the X Games and bring some real nourishment to the world-class athletes competing in the event. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and we were invited back many times. The athletes shared Sambazon with their friends and family, and inspired many others to seek out our products.

After winning a national account with Whole Foods – still our most comprehensive retailer – we began expanding into supermarkets and eventually into stores like Safeway, Kroger and Costco. As our company grew, we continued to study the leaders of responsible businesses: Anita Roddick of the Body Shop, Ben and Jerry’s, etc. We brought on mentors like John Elstrott, Chairman of Whole Foods Market, and Steve Demos, Founder of White Wave (Silk Soymilk) – icons of the natural products industry. They gave us a tremendous amount of guidance on building a strong natural foods brand and crossing over into the mainstream while maintaining brand integrity and product quality.

We received recognition along the way and were humbled by it. In 2006, Sambazon won the prestigious Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence for helping to create worldwide awareness and pioneer a sustainable industry. Later that year, Sambazon was awarded Ashoka’s Changemakers Innovation Award for Market-Based Strategies that Benefit Low-Income Communities. We also joined the UN’s Business Call to Action as a small business determined to do our part to change our world, little by little.

Future growth and vision

So far, we have focused on high-touch, low-reach marketing with in-store demos, sampling events and community outreach. But it’s 2015, and we are entering a new phase of business with much larger goals. We are about to launch a major advertising campaign and rapidly expand our Sambazon Açai Bowl Cafes across the US and Asia. Our message is much more than simply “drink our juice”: we’re asking people to “change their world, little by little” – to create positive change along with us. It’s a concept that originated with the Sambazon logo – the Amazon Warrior who protects the forest. This spirit is coming to life with the help of contemporary warriors – social and environmental changemakers. Like our products, our advertisements double as a public interest campaign, and that’s what makes them so compelling.

While we like to break the mold, we are also dedicated to our roots. Our specialty is food production – an industry that is notoriously unsustainable. We like to think of ourselves as a new generation of food companies taking a stand for something better. If you look at the natural products sector, you’ll find others doing the same thing – like our friends at Manitoba Harvest, Guayaki and Nature’s Path. Together, we’re paving the way for others.

As a non-timber forest product, Sambazon Açaí has brought health and wellness to the Amazon Rainforest, and become a successful triple bottom line business. We have shown that capitalism combined with democracy can be a powerful weapon to promote innovation, social equality and the protection of biodiversity. It is imperative that social-minded leaders continue supporting market-driven approaches to fighting poverty and proactively driving conservation. We hope that Sambazon can be an inspiration for future generations of entrepreneurs to create positive solutions for the incredible world in which we live.

Read more:

BCtA Sambazon Case Study: Providing sustainable forest management to açaí fruit growers in the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest

Note: This article was originally published on the Business Call to Action Guardian Partner Zone, which you can visit here (not longer available)