IIAP will develop a functional beverage based on Amazon chestnut to improve selenium absorption

The Peruvian Amazon Research Institute (IIAP) will develop a project to produce a functional beverage from the Amazonian nut that will improve the body's absorption of selenium. The initiative was selected by ProCiencia in the Innovation Challenges for Regional Development competition, with the aim of validating this technology under conditions close to commercial production. The proposal will take advantage of broken nuts and nut cake, by-products that currently have little commercial value, to create a gourmet functional beverage through a fermentation process. With this, the IIAP seeks to reduce waste of raw materials, diversify the range of products derived from the nut, and generate higher incomes for the nut-gathering families of Madre de Dios. The project is based on several years of research by the IIAP on the nutritional properties of the Amazonian nut. During this period, researchers developed and evaluated, at a laboratory scale, fermented products that will now be ...