Sweet, cream, juice, ice cream and butter. The varied use of the pulp and almond of the cupuaçu fruit [Theobroma grandiflorum] has generated an increasing demand by the industry. Now, the production of one of the tastiest fruits in the Amazon, with its strong, acidic and unmistakable flavor, can be boosted by a technology created by the Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (Embrapa) Amazônia Oriental [Brazilian Agricultural Research Company – Eastern Amazon], which aims at increasing the productivity of the cupuaçu tree and its resistance to diseases.

The technology is called Cupuaçu 5.0 clonal kit, which uses five varieties of clones, through grafting, to produce improvements in cultivation and generate more income, sustainability and boost the market of the fruit, an important asset of the Amazonian bioeconomy.

The five clones are cultivars produced by Embrapa, that is, genetically improved plants, based on the selection of their best characteristics, all identified by the acronym BRS. The genetic improvement of cupuaçu is a work developed for about 30 years by Embrapa and has already resulted in several cultivars, of which the most recent and improved are those that make up kit 5.0: the varieties BRS Careca, BRS Fartura, BRS Duquesa, BRS Curinga and BRS Golias.
The clones are much more productive than previous versions, with a higher yield of pulp and almonds, and are also resistant to the main disease that attacks the species, called witch's broom.

Higher productivity

The production figures of Cupuaçu 5.0 are impressive: almost six times more than the average produced in the state. To put this into perspective, up to 14 tons of the fruit are produced in a single hectare. The previous variety, BRS Carimbó, produces up to eight tons, while the average in Pará is only 2.5 tons per hectare.

Regarding almond productivity, the kit 5.0 reaches 1.9 tons per hectare, compared to 1.1 tons of BRS Carimbó and just 0.04 tons of the Pará average.

Another advantage of the clonal kit is the extension of the harvest period, which goes from four to six months. This makes harvesting and production absorption by the agroindustry easier, better distributing activities over more months and avoiding overload in processing.

The main responsible for all this work is the agronomist Rafael Moyses Alves, a researcher at Embrapa. He explains that the "supercupuaçu" kit is the result of improvements to the previous variety, launched in 2012. “The 5.0 clonal kit is the result of extensive research with another variety called BRS Carimbó, formed by 16, let's call them, ‘parents’. These 16 parents were crossed with each other and the resulting seeds produced an improved and quite diverse population, whose seeds we offer to producers. It is diverse in its resistance to witch's broom, however, not so much in terms of productivity. So, we tried to maintain the productivity level of these 16 materials and we arrived at these other 5.0 varieties”, explains the specialist.

New markets

Beyond the use of the cupuaçu pulp, the current great target for the fruit is the use of its almond, both in cooking and in the cosmetics industry. The oil and butter, extracted from the seed, are highly appreciated for their physical-chemical characteristics, which are superior to other substances, these characteristics have been increasingly demanded by the sector.

“Cupuaçu almonds used to be a hindrance to the industry, a waste, because it was difficult to know what to do with that residue. But now there is more noble use: the extraction of butter for the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industry. And there is even better use: just as cocoa almonds make chocolate, cupuaçu almonds have enormous potential to make a product similar to chocolate, which has been called cupulate,” says Alves.

However, the demand for almonds and their byproducts has been greater than the producers’ capacity to supply them. “Currently, the cosmetics industry demands a much larger quantity than what is available; producers have difficulty meeting demand. There are small companies producing cupuaçu almond butter because it attracts the industry, it is remarkably interesting for making cosmetics. So, the 5.0 kit has this advantage, because it produces good pulp, but it also produces excellent almonds. This will generate good income to the producer,” highlights the agronomist.

Tree canopy replacement

Unlike BRS Carimbó, which is a seed, Cupuaçu 5.0 is produced through grafting, a technique that joins one plant to another so that they grow together. Seedlings are prepared with each of the five varieties in the clonal kit and grafted onto shoots from an already grown tree, generating new branches with improved characteristics.

This means that the entire cupuaçu tree canopy is gradually replaced, starting with the new branches. This is a technique, also created by Embrapa, that was already used for cupuaçu even before kit 5.0, to remove diseased or unproductive branches and replace them by new, better ones. 

Alves emphasizes that the five varieties in the kit need to be used together to ensure genetic variability. “You cannot use just one clone, because all the materials there will be genetically the same. It must have other partners to be able to make this crossing.” To do this, the plants are arranged in an interspersed manner in the cultivation site.

Genome

These innovations take place at Embrapa’s Experimental Field in Tomé-Açu, where the mother plants are located, not only for the improved varieties of cupuaçu, but also for other species. According to agricultural technician Edilson Rodrigues, coordinator of the place, the field has the largest collection of fruit trees from the humid tropics in the world. “Here we research bacuri, muruci, pupunha, açaí, taperebá, and camu-camu. We have germplasm fields for all these fruit trees here,” he says, referring to the set of samples of genetic material from the species, which are the source of variability to the improvements.

In the case of cupuaçu, it has already been possible to sequence its complete genome, which opens even more possibilities for future genetic improvements. The sequencing research was developed by Alessandro Varani, professor of bioinformatics and genomics at the São Paulo State University, Júlio de Mesquita Filho; Vinícius Abreu, professor at the School of Computer Science at the Federal University of Pará; and Rafael Alves, creator of the 5.0 kit.

Beyond identifying genes related to productivity and defense against witches' broom, the study also discovered bacteria that live in the leaves of the cupuaçu tree and produce substances that combat threats and strengthen the plants. The discovery could help to produce new varieties that are even more resistant to diseases and more resilient to climate change.

Bioeconomy

that make up kit 5.0. “It is one of the most interesting products we have, not only to the bioeconomy, but also to the restoration of degraded areas. Both cupuaçu and cocoa are species that tolerate some level of shade and therefore can be planted at the same time as reforested areas that have been altered. Since cupuaçu and cocoa provide good income to the producer, he is interested in maintaining those trees,” he says.

The agronomist defends agroforestry systems for fair and sustainable production. “With these climate changes, which we do not know where they will end up, I do not see any other alternative to those who live here in the tropics other than using an agroforestry system. And cupuaçu is one of the species that best suits this type of system,” he argues. To him, with the Cupuaçu 5.0 kit, the fruit’s potential for adding value to Amazonian production that keeps the forest standing is even greater.

Focusing on the future

The Cupuaçu 5.0 clonal kit was officially launched in 2022 and it has been gradually introduced into crops through the grafting process. “We are multiplying this material to deliver to producers, who will plant it as a grafted seedling,” explains Alves.
Although there are already producers using the technology, in municipalities such as Tomé-Açu, Castanhal and Marabá, it is expected that the use of the clonal kit will multiply when nurseries start producing seedlings.

“The projection of a greater number of spread plants will happen when nurseries accredited by the Ministry of Agriculture enter bidding processes and start selling seedlings to farmers. More producers will have access to this genetic material,” says the agricultural technician Edilson Rodrigues, from Tomé-Açu.

It was precisely in this municipality that the first producers began the process of replacing the canopy with new cultivars. This is the case of Adailton Mendes, who follows his father's footsteps in the tradition of cupuaçu cultivation. 

“My father has been working with cupuaçu for about ten years, and I have also been working for some time. When 5.0 kit was launched, I adopted it and brought it to our property, about two years ago. The process of replacing the canopy takes one to two years, to form a new plant with the new characteristics. So, now, we will be able to start observing the concrete differences in productivity,” he says. 

But the producer says that some considerable changes are already being noticed. “Some plants that used to produce little are now producing more, and we also see very large fruit with a slightly thinner skin,” he notes. 

Mendes has elevated expectations for the results of the new technology. “When you use seeds, some plants have low productivity. But, when you use grafting, the entire orchard will produce equally. If you have 400 plants and clone them all, there will come a time when all 400 will produce equally,” he says. “And there are one or two varieties of 5.0 that can extend our harvest. In other words, when the normal [BRS] Carimbó harvest is ending, 5.0 will still bear fruit, and this is a positive point to the producer, because they can get a better price in the off-season,” he says.

INSTITUTIONAL PARTNERSHIP
The production of Liberal Amazon is one of the initiatives of the Technical Cooperation Agreement between the Liberal Group and the Federal University of Pará. The articles involving research from UFPA are revised by professionals from the academy. The translation of the content is also provided by the agreement, through the research project ET-Multi: Translation Studies: multifaces and multisemiotics.