Brazil began to recognize açaí as a “national fruit” through Law 15,330/2026, in a context of concern about so-called biopiracy and attempts by foreign companies to claim names, brands and applications of Amazonian ingredients.
Consumed for centuries in the Amazon, açaí is described as a traditional food, often served as a thick paste, and which gained a new life outside Brazil when it began to be sold as a cold dessert, with granola and fruit, according to Sapo.
The law now enacted recovers a proposal presented in 2011 and changes the standard that already recognized cupuaçu, trying to give more political and cultural weight to a product that has become global.
Biopiracy: when the name becomes “property”
During the parliamentary debate, a case that marked the topic was recalled: in 2003, a Japanese company registered the trademark “açaí”, and it took Brazil several years to be able to cancel this registration.
The most cited example in the discussion about “appropriation” is cupuaçu, which was registered in Japan and associated with the charging of royalties when the name appeared on the label of exported products.
Even so, experts interviewed by AFP emphasize that the new law has above all a symbolic value: it does not, in itself, resolve complex international disputes, but helps to “put the issue on the agenda”.
Because the seal is symbolic, and the market is real
The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture argued that the measure reinforces the status of açaí as a “genuinely Brazilian product” and a source of income for thousands of Amazonian families linked to harvesting and processing.
On the other hand, an intellectual property analyst at Embrapa pointed out the risk of Amazonian fruits with unique properties being used in new products developed and patented abroad, without a proportional return for those who supply the raw material.
The same source states that there are already patent applications outside Brazil for specific uses of açaí active ingredients, especially in the food and cosmetic areas, which fuels fears of “capture” of value in other markets.
The new challenge: genes in digital files
According to , the debate is also linked to the Nagoya Protocol, which seeks to guarantee rules for access and sharing of benefits associated with genetic resources. The protocol came into force in 2014, but Brazil completed the process to become a party in 2021, after depositing ratification at the UN.
According to the AFP, the treaty currently faces a difficult loophole: with the digitization of genetic data, researchers can download DNA sequences and develop products without physically collecting plants or seeds, complicating oversight and benefit-sharing.
Embrapa also highlights a practical point: açaí pulp and other raw materials often leave the country, while high value-added research takes place abroad, and, therefore, advocates more investment in science and technology in the Amazon to retain local wealth.
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