Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Info provided and translated by the
American Chamber of Commerce of Peru (AmCham Peru)

It is an Andean root that has enormous nutritious properties and grows in different parts of the Andean Region, but it is mostly concentrated in the district of Socota, Cutervo province in the Cajamarca region.

Arracacha can be a great source for the extraction of organic starch. Thus, a quite interesting substitute for regular starch. Among the comparative advantages that arracacha offers regarding other substitute starch sources we can find i)a smaller granule, which makes digestion easier; ii)a better resistance to wheather changes (freezing and such) and to industrial treatments that might deteriorate the gel structure and also iii)the lower temperature at which it can reach the jello state, which then translates in lower energy costs for industries.

Hence, organic arracacha starch could be used in instant food (soups, sauces, pasta, juice concentrates), refrigerated products (fruit mixes, meat and dairy products, ice creams) and baby food as well. Moreover, given the fact that the market for organic products grows at a very accelerated pace, mainly in the United States. The culture and trend by which consumers opt for natural products is nowadays a life philosophy, where not only fresh food tends to be organic, but every processed product as well.

*For more info on this product please contact Mr. Renato Poire of AmCham’s TradeCenter at tradecenter@amcham.org.pe