Every Brand Needs a Logo...

We returned from our first trip to the Amazon full of inspiration and low on cash. Knowing that our new company was in need of a logo, a dear friend of ours introduced us to two of his talented buddies one a DJ, the other a DJ and graffiti artist; both, self-taught graphic designers.

We spent some time with the dynamic duo recounting stories of our journey through Brazil and did our best to convey the ephemeral aspects of the Amazon and newfound obsession with açaí.

We explained that while on a tour through the Amazon forest we learned that sales of açaí fruit were more profitable to its inhabitants than selling less sustainable forest goods and that we’d decided to name the company SAMBAZON to memorialize our intention, i.e., the Sustainable Management of the Brazilian Amazon via market driven conservation.

Although we’d decided on a name (albeit long and somewhat tricky to pronounce), we offered the guys little more than the two adjectives: mystery & power. After several iterations, the Sambazon logo was born.

We’ve come to view the warrior in our logo as the protector of the forest. His stoic expression reminds us to remain steadfast through challenges and the beams of light emanating from around him represent the light that shines within each of us.


With Love & Devotion,

-skanda

BBQ Açaí Tempeh Burger

Warm nights, fresh produce, and a long weekend ahead of us. Grilling season. Like usual, I had to add the superfoods and turn the classic burger into ultimate vegan tastiness - and I think you'll like where it ended up. So here's to friends and BBQs and a great summer ahead of us all.

Açaí BBQ Sauce
(Enough for 2, size up as needed)

1/2 Sweet yellow onion
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Sweet piquanté peppers (they are from South Africa and sometimes called Peppadews or peri peri peppadrops)
1/3 ketchup
1/2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp chili powder (just use your favorite)
1/2 Sambazon Açaí Pure Smoothie Pack



Saute onion in oil till translucent, then add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer for a couple minutes. Pour into a blender, and blend till smooth.



The Burger

Tempeh
Yellow crooked-neck squash
Tomato
Avocado
Romaine lettuce

Douse tempeh with BBQ sauce and rub squash with olive oil and add to a hot grill. Let cook till brown lines appear, flip and do the same. Add extra sauce to your tempeh each time you flip it. After about 10 minutes, or until desired doneness, add your buns to the grill to toast them briefly. Then pull everything off and assemble as you please.

Great with sweet potato fries (make them yourself of buy them frozen) and Açaí Sangria!

Recipe: The Kale + Pineapple Bowl

Spring means tons of fresh leafy greens... at your local supermarket, in your CSA basket, or from your garden. I'm a big fan of kale, chard and collards (my new found favorite). So, with all this goodness floating around, I decided to make a fresh greens bowl this morning for breakfast with a handful of kale from my garden, although this would taste great with any leafy green you have around.



The Kale + Pineapple Bowl

2 Sambazon Original Açaí Smoothie Packs
1 Banana (half for blending, half for topping)
4-5 Leaves of kale
1/4 Cup pineapple (frozen or fresh)
A splash of apple juice (a little goes a long way)



Chop up your smoothie packs. The easiest way is to slice them in the middle then bend in half and squeeze them out. Then make sure you recycle them!





Blend everything up, top with half of the banana and Manitoba Harvest hemp seeds. Cheers to being a greenie!

Purple Hearts

Salted chocolate, caramel, açaí tarts... more purple in spirit than in look. This stuff is rich. I mean really rich. So make sure you have someone (or a few someones) to share it with. This also will take you a bit of time, about 3-4 hours. But in the end, you'll get to eat it, and its worth it.

Chocolate Tart Dough

8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 Cup plus 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
1 Large egg yolk
1 Tsp pure vanilla extract (pls don't use vanilla flavoring, it's just never as good)
1 1/4 Cups all-purpose flour
1/4 Cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

I use an electric mixer because I just got one, and am obsessed with it, but you could easy hand mix this with a wooden spoon, it will just take a bit longer. Either way, mix butter and confectioners' sugar till smooth. Then add egg yolk and vanilla and mix till smooth.



sift flour and cocoa powder (this makes sure you don't have those evil clumps in your dough) and add to your bowl then mix until just combined; form dough into a disk, seal in plastic wrap, and chill for an hour.



Preheat oven to 325° F. Flour a large surface and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and press into a tart pan. You can either use a 10-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom or smaller individual tart pans - I used heart shaped small tart pans. Chill for about 30 minutes.



To bake, line with parchment paper and beans or weights - I didn't have parchment paper, and used garbanzo beans, which works, they just make small indents in the bottom of your tart - not a big deal. Bake with beans for 15 minutes, then pour the beans out and bake for 5-10 minutes more, or until crust is dry. Move to cooling rack.

Caramel Filling

1/2 Cup water
2 Cups granulated sugar
1/4 Cup light corn syrup
1/2 Cup heavy cream
8 Tbsp(1 stick) unsalted butter
2 Tbsp crème fraîche

Put water, sugar and corn syrup into a large saucepan and simmer and stir occasionally till it begins to turn golden. Turn off heat, and add cream (it will bubble ferociously once you begin to stir, but don't worry, it mellows out quickly). Add butter and crème fraîche and stir till smooth. If your caramel doesn't mix completely at first or you have some harder bits, you can put the pan on very low heat as you stir. Once mixed, let cool but stir occasionally so as not to form a crust on top. Pour into your tart and let it set.



Chocolate Ganache

1/2 cup heavy cream
3 1/2 ounces extra-bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 Scoops Sambazon Freeze-Dried Açaí Powder



Chop chocolate finely and put into a heatproof bowl. Heat cream to a slight boil and pour over chocolate. Let it sit for a moment, and then stir until smooth. Add in açaí powder and mix. While warm, pour into the tarts as the top layer and place tarts in the fridge to set.



To serve, remove tarts from the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour to warm up to room temperature, and sprinkle with salt - I used large sea salt.

Adapted from LOTTIE + DOOF, who adapted a recipe from Marlow&Sons.

Sambazon's New Warrior of Change!

Congrats to Joe Chisholm of Waves of Action, you are our newest Warrior of Change. And with that comes $10,000 and the responsibility to make the world a better place - a happier, more sustainable, and more knowledgeable one.



Through Waves of Action, Joe will help to bring awareness and catalyze action among the youth for environmental issues affecting our oceanic environment and cetaceans (whales, porpoises and dolphins). Waves of Action will engage students around the world to make their own films about environmental issues of their choice. Joe, we look forward to seeing the film tour the world and watching your movement grow.


To everyone else, thanks for participating, voting, submitting, listening. And stay tuned to this blog, we’ll have updates from Joe as he goes on his voyage of oceanic welfare.

Acai Caramel (i.e. purple butter)

Mmmmm, purple butter for utter holiday indulgence. Because if Coca Cola can make Santa red, why can't I make happiness purple?



1 Cup Sambazon Original Açaí Juice
2/3 heaping cup sugar
Pinch of salt
2 Tbsp heavy cream
2.5 Tbsp butter

In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, heat acai juice and let boil till reduced to 1/3. Reduce heat to medium and add sugar, salt, cream, butter and stir till everything is melted and mixed thoroughly. It will boil a bit ferociously, but don’t be scared, keep mixing occasionally.



After about 10 minutes or so, you should notice that the liquid is starting to congeal when stirred. Turn off heat and let it cool completely (if you’re rushed, put it in the fridge or freezer).



Once cool, pour caramel onto plastic wrap and form into a long stick bout ½ inch in diameter. Wrap up and place in freezer for another 15 minutes or until hard enough to cut. Cut into small candy sized pieces about ½ inch long, and wrap individually in plastic wrap, but not before you sneak one yourself.



Happy Holidays!

Water Warriors

Pro surfer Jon Rose was on a surf trip headed to Bali in 2009 when the tragic quake hit. A couple years prior, his dad Jack Rose had started Rain Catcher, a non-profit to distribute easy and economical water catchment and filtration systems in Africa. So Jon had a few water filters on him and promptly gave them out to aid workers in Sumatra. Seeing the devastation and the need for clean water inspired Jon to create Waves4Water and grow this concept of surf community distributed clean water systems.

“The mission is simple: To get clean water to every single person who needs it.”



Since then, Waves4Water has worked on the front line to provide clean water to communities in need around the world. They have worked on a community level, making simple filtration systems available to traveling surfers to give out to people in need at their destinations, and they have worked with strategic partners such as UN forces to distribute filters in earthquake crises areas.
Here are just some of the results:

Sumatra: Earthquake relief – 250 (community & family) filters distributed = 7000 people with access to clean water.
Bali: 37 villages on impoverished East side now stabilized and drinking clean water.
Haiti: Earthquake relief – 31,000 (community & family) filters distributed = 2,100,000 people with access to clean water.
Chile: Earthquake relief – 1000 (family) filters distributed = 10,000 people with access to clean water.

Today, Jack and Jon Rose are Sambazon warriors, and continue to Warrior Up by making positive change on a massive level across the world. Learn more about how Jack and Jon Warrior Up! Or stock up on water filters to become a clean water courier on your next trip to a developing nation.

Açaí Cookie Sandwiches

A little sweet, a lot creamy, a hint of purple goodness. These cookies are delish, made fresh and compiled right before you munch.



1 1/2 Cup flour
1 Tbsp cream of tartar
1/2 Tsp baking soda
1/4 Tsp salt

1 Stick (8 Tbsp) of butter, softened
3/4 Cup sugar
1 Tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp whole milk

1/2 package of cream cheese
1/2 original açaí smoothie pack

In a standup mixer or by hand with a whisk, mix the first 4 ingredients together in a bowl. In another bowl mix butter and sugar till creamy, then add vanilla and milk and mix till fully incorporated. Add the flour mix to the butter mix and blend till mixed.

Flour a cutting board and roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick, then place in the fridge for 30 minutes or longer.



When dough is cooled, use circular cookie cutters to cut out cookies. Make a smaller circle cut into half of the cookies.

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees, and bake cookies for 10 minutes or until slightly golden on the edges, then let cool completely.



Right before serving, blend cream cheese with açaí until fully mixed and schmear a tablespoon or so in between two cookies.

Warrior of Change Seane Corn

Seane Corn is a modern yogini and renown instructor, her unabashed spirit has caught the eye of media around the country. Seane teaches a dynamic vinyasa flow and leads her students on an inner journey towards personal understanding, but beyond the studio, social change is her mantra.

Seane Corn, Hala Khouri and Suzanne Sterling founded Off the Mat, Into the World (OTM) in 2007. OTM helps individuals take the path of yoga “off the mat and into the world,” expanding the sphere of change outward to local and global communities through leadership trainings, fostering community collaboration, and initiating local and global service projects.

Using their expertise with leadership and positive change, OTM leaders will help us judge the Sambazon Warrior of Change Contest to elect the most realistic and impactful project proposals.

Through intensive weekends OTM empowers individuals to become leaders of social change in their communities by these simple, yet very important steps:

• Self-Inquiry: Who am I? What is my Purpose?
• Transformational Journey Work: Transforming our wounds into tools for healing.
• Community: Conscious collaboration skills.
• Action: Creating a group project that makes a difference.

If you’re interested in empowerment through yoga, OTM will be hosting leadership trainings in cities across the US next year. Till the end of November a 5% of all Sambazon’s Smoothie Pack Sales will be donated to scholarships that help yogis in need attend OTM trainings.

OTM is made up of thousands of yogis in action who practice, volunteer and teach all over the world. This network has created concrete positive change through tangible projects like the Global Seva Challenge that currently raises funds to support communities in crisis in South Africa, the Empowered Youth Initiative which immerses yogis with at-risk youth communities in inner city Los Angeles, and many more.
To get involved, visit www.offthematintotheworld.org


.

Cardiff goes Green

Here at Sambazon we are all about creating positive change so any chance we get to inspire and empower others to do the same we don’t hesitate to participate. This weekend our San Diego team setup shop at the Cardiff Surf Classic and Green Beach Fair to help support a great community that is inspiring their town to create positive change everyday. Along with our friends and family at Guayaki, Clif Bar, Ocean Minded, Surfrider Foundation, Bamboo SK8 and Bull Taco, dozens of other vendors and businesses set up their booths to help show the community of Cardiff how everyday activities can easily be made green and sustainable to positively affect their environment and surroundings.

Surfrider and Ocean Minded teamed up to do a beach cleanup: all attendees who picked up 50 pieces of trash with the provided hardware were entered to win a prize and at the end of the event the trash was turned into an amazing recycled sculpture. It was great to see the community come together and show their love for the beach, the environment and help promote their sustainable business practices. Well done Cardiff – way to show your true colors and help others to Warrior Up! and create positive change.

Warrior Up,
Cameron Faist - Sambazon Event Manager

Real Deal Açaí

It’s beautiful to observe the growing importance that we as consumers are placing on the source and authenticity of our food. Movies like Food Inc. are helping to make us aware of the injustices within the food industry so we can shape positive change through our purchasing decisions.

Since bringing açaí to market, we’ve witnessed how subtle inaccuracies around açaí in the marketplace evolved into pervasive misinformation as companies both large and small raced to jump on the açaí bandwagon.

It’s become apparent that açaí scams of one form or another have become all too pervasive; and so, we’ve taken it as our duty to lift the veil and let the truth be known, a campaign we call our Real Deal Açaí series.

The goal for this new educational campaign is to provide a simple means by which people can determine the amount of ‘whole food açaí’ in a given product. In an effort to remain as objective as possible, we’ve posted the lab results of some relevant açaí products as examples of what to look out for.

The Real Deal Açaí series will come to you in the form of blogs, newsletters and messaging on our products’ labels as well from the Real Deal Açaí page of our website.

Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with this new resource so you too can become a source of Açaí truth:

http://www.sambazon.com/realdeal


Yours in all things Açaí,

-skanda

Sambazon Warrior Up Launch Party!

This week Sambazon Launched Warrior Up in San Diego, CA. It’s campaign that celebrates warriors of change – people like Rob Machado, Bob Burnquist, Seane Corn, and many others. Here’s some photos of the launch party. Thanks to everyone that came, especially our Sambazon Warriors who have contributed to much to this project.



Ray Barbee and the Matson II performed a great opening set!



Manu Scaarpa, Stephanie Bernstein ( To-Go Ware), Rob Machado (Rob Machado Foundation) and Jeremy Black (VP Marketing Sambazon).


Raw Food Chef Ani Phyo posses with her pup, her manager Kato, and Sambazon's Scotty Nemeth.



Kassia Meador gets in character with a group of friends.



Sambazon's Warrior Up photo booth inspired a whole ton of interesting shots - headdresses included.



Bob Burnquist and wife Veronica show us how they Warriored Up!

For all the photos, check out our flickr stream. And hear what Fuel TV had to say about the night!

The Power of Good Vibes

"Love your Acai berry juice!!! Top-notch product, great price, good taste. Feel a lot better using it!!!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

Bless you all,
Customer: M. Franson – San Diego, CA"


This recent email sent to info@sambazon.com served as a potent reminder of the power of gratitude & appreciation. It transported me to a time when my yoga teacher (who was critiquing my teaching style at the time), reminded me that I’d forgotten to convey to the class the importance of cultivating deep feelings of love & gratitude during our practice. He explained that every emotion has a corresponding affect on the physical body and that to experience the full healing potential of yoga, one should strive to remain continually aware of such positive emotions; a phenomenon I enjoyed directly while reading the grateful words of Mr. Franson.

As we strive to experience higher degrees of health and vitality through our diet, it’s easy to forget the importance of taking a moment each day to let go of negative feelings and replace them with feelings of love, acceptance & gratitude.


With Love & Devotion,
Skanda

Sambazon CEO Ryan Black Volunteers in Haiti

I had the privilege of spending a week of vacation last week volunteering in Port au Prince, Haiti. The trip was organized by a local church group of 14 people including me, some of the members which had made trips there before and after the devastating earthquake in January of this year. I personally felt compelled to go there in an effort to share some hard work, love and service to a country and people who need it terribly. Despite the overwhelming conditions (heat, poverty, water, medical, food, housing), the Haitian people’s happiness and energy reminded me of Brazil, one other country in the world where the energy and joy simply can’t be overcome by the poverty. This was uplifting and exciting.

While I was there, I ran into Sambazon Ambassador Jon Rose. To bring clean drinking water to school children in Kenya & Uganda, Jon’s father Jack Rose started raincatcher.org. Jon Rose then created Waves for Water to bring the solutions developed in Africa to the rest of the world, and most recently, Haiti. W4W is arming local people with water filters and buckets - a simple yet effective water purification system that makes any accessible water potable. Jon, Jack and all the remarkable people I met in Haiti truly revise the boundaries of what is possible.

I don’t have to tell any of you how truly blessed we are to have been born in country where most of the basic needs are not even a question. While my personal journey to Haiti last week was in the name of building a concrete wall and servicing the people down there, I knew that leading up to the trip that I would benefit much more from what they gave than what I could give them. Coming back to lovely San Clemente and reflecting on an intense week at a Haitian orphanage, I am quite sure of this. The video above is 10 minute slide show of the pictures that I took and the love that was shared with so many beautiful kids and hard working people.

-Ryan Black

Buy Rob’s Organik Blend (ROB) Wax, Go Surf, Drink Sambazon... Check!

Rob Machado, Sambazon and Bubble Gum Surf Wax have teamed up to offer friends and fans the earth-friendly deal of the day. On the back of every Bubble Gum’s ROB Rob’s Organik Blend (ROB) Wax wrapper, you’ll find a Sambazon coupon for $1 off any two juices or energy drinks. To top it off, on every wrapper, there’s a link to Sambazon’s website with special online coupons on other products you might not see in your conventional grocery store. Reusing a recycled paper wrapper printed with soy-based ink? Just another thing SIMA’s 2009 Waterman of the Year is doing to make the world a better place.

According to Bubble Gum co-founder, Britt Galland, “it’s a sweet deal, because if you spend a buck on a bar of ROB wax, you get that buck back when you buy Sambazon products. Sambazon’s Jeremy Black likes the promotion because creates another use for the recycled label and “it enables Rob to share some of his favorite products with his fans and friends.”

Well, that’s it, we hope you enjoy the deal. And to Robs’ friends and fans, thank you for all the support over the years.

-Sambazon

Sambazon named in Outside Magazine's "Best Places to Work"

Sambazon was recently named to Outside magazine’s third annual “Best Places to Work” list. Sambazon was ranked No. 47 out of 50 selected companies. The full story was published in the May issue of Outside magazine, or you can click here to see the full list of companies to receive this honor.

Outside’s “Best Places to Work” list was compiled with the help of the Outdoor Industry Association and Best Companies Group. The year-long selection process began with an outreach effort that identified a wide range of non-profit and for-profit organizations with at least 15 employees working in the United States. Participating companies were then sent confidential employee-satisfaction surveys and employer-questionnaires to collect information about benefits, compensation, policies, job satisfaction, environmental initiatives, and community outreach programs. All of the results were analyzed by Best Companies Group experts, who selected the 50 companies that strive to enhance their employees’ enjoyment of active endeavors, and environmental and social involvement.

“Sambazon is honored and thrilled to be part of Outside magazine’s Best Places to Work. We strive to do good within the community, be as environmentally friendly as possible and to make our company a fun, exciting place for our employees to work,” said Ryan Black, CEO of Sambazon.

"These 50 companies come from a vast array of industries but they're all following the same enlightened path," said Michael Roberts, Executive Editor of Outside. "They're successful businesses in a challenging economy precisely because they support a proper work-life balance. They know that benefits like on-site gyms and fitness classes, reimbursements for ski passes and sports racing fees, and support for community service efforts during work hours make their employees happier and thus more productive."

We're very honored to be listed along side these companies and promise to continue to make strides to keep ourselves here!

Thanks for the support,
Sambazon

Sambazon's Director of Lifestyle Marketing & Triathlete Scott Nemeth recaps Ironman St. George

This past weekend, my wife Fe and I had the chance to bring Sambazon out to the Ironman in St. George, Utah.

First things first, huge congratulations to all the people who raced, finishing a 2.4 mi. swim, 112 mi. bike, and a 26.2 mi. run is definitely not easy. Seeing the intensity and the rigor that the participants put their bodies through is incredible. Big, small, short, tall, round or 100 lbs....everyone out there is fighting for something, and somehow, clear as day, you can see right into the window of their emotions and experience the fight with them. Especially in those last 100 meters as they near the finish line! Powerful stuff! Thank you all for the inspiration! I will be taking it with me as I compete at Ironman Brasil in a couple weeks.

Big ups to Michael Weiss, the IM St. George Champion. So he tells me after the race he drinks two Sambazon bottles per day...ha...who knew? In fact, most Triathletes seem to really appreciate our stuff. Maybe it’s because they are looking for a refreshing alternative to all the highly processed drinks, gels, and chews that people are wolfing down all day. Or maybe it is because our açaí is just that good..either way I am always impressed at how loyal the Sambazon users are.

Looking for a treat on the way home, we searched out an amazing raw food spot in Vegas called "Go Raw." In addition to making a quite tasty bowl using Sambazon açaí, they also have some amazing raw burgers, pizzas, and pastas... If you ever roll through town, we highly suggest you try it!

Thanks,
Scott Nemeth - Director of Lifestyle Marketing / SAMBAZON

Earth Day Celebration At Our Local Ecology Center!

Over the years, our investment in the environment has brought us close with others who share the same commitment. One of those organizations is the San Juan Capistrano Ecology Center, located one town away from our headquarters. The Ecology Center, housed in an old craftsman property, sits on the only organic farm in Orange County and is the hub of discussion and action about sustainability, organics, and environmental responsibility in the region. From teaching field trip groups of kids about how to recycle and grow their own veggies, to hosting a summer speaker series that draws progressive thinkers from around the world, the Ecology Center is truly building a local platform and knowledgebase for positive change in our world.

This year’s Earth Day Festival at the Ecology Center drew over 500 locals, who came to buy organic starter plants, learn how to sprout grains and seeds, tie die some clothes with natural inks, indulge in an all organic lunch and listen to some amazing bluegrass... And ultimately to participate in the fun simple things in life that make one’s footprint a little less harsh. We contributed açaí bowls and set up an açaí seed workshop where kids and adults could learn about the whole process of harvesting açaí, try our açaí sorbet and then use the seeds from the berries to make unique jewelry. It was truly a gorgeous spring day – where the young and old and everyone in between came to celebrate the earth by learning how to better take care of her.

To learn more about the Ecology Center and the programs they have, please click here to visit them online.

Keep it Purple,
Kaia Lai - West Events Manager / SAMBAZON

Happy Earth Day! - Written by Ryan Black, CEO of Sambazon

While Earth Day is one of our favorite weeks and favorite days to celebrate, here at Sambazon, we treat everyday like Earth Day. While this sentiment may sound a little bit cheesy, it’s true. We do our best to contribute to the health of our environment and community on a daily basis. We keep our office as green as possible – we use reusable utensils, recycled paper and recycled shipping supplies. We are constantly striving to reduce the carbon footprint of our business by using the newest and greenest solutions to our marketing and shipping practices – for more information on these initiatives – check out the blogs written earlier this week by Sambazon team members, Jody, Cameron and Keith.

At Sambazon, sustainable business practice is an even larger part of what we do in our office and within our community here in Southern California. The mission of our business is to maintain our triple bottom line success as we grow. Our focus is on the environmental, social and economic impact of our business. By working closely with the world’s foremost conservation organizations (like The Nature Conservancy) and other key non-governmental organizations, Sambazon has pioneered the first of its kind Fair Trade, sustainable and certified Organic supply chain of açaí. As a result, Sambazon has positively impacted over 1,100 local family farmers and over 1.7 million acres of land in the Brasilian Amazon.

Over the past week, Sambazon has participated in Earth Day events all over the country – from LA to NYC – we have been out in full force supporting the various efforts of different communities celebrating Earth Day, including our own. Our annual Samba Earth Day is an afternoon dedicated to our employees, the individuals that believe in our mission and make Sambazon the incredibly dynamic and progressive company it is today. This year included an organic feast from one of our favorite local restaurants, guest speakers from the Ecology Center and ASEC along with staff speakers who shared the projects they are currently involved with - projects aimed at greening our practices. And as a new company initiative to eliminate unnecessary waste, we gave all employees purple Kleen Kanteens to use with our water cooler instead of the biodegradable cups we’ve had in the past.

We are constantly striving to improve our business practices and make them as “green” as they can possibly be. I encourage you to do the same in your business and personal life. Ride your bike instead of drive when you can. Bring reusable shopping bags to the farmers market. Print emails only when necessary and on recycled paper. Practice meat free Mondays. Every little thing really does add up and make a difference. Be kind to yourself and your environment.

Celebrate Earth Day everyday,
Ryan Black (CEO)

Sambazon's Environmentally Friendly and Sustainable Packaging

Sambazon is, and has always been focused around sustainability and environmental stewardship through the sustainable harvest of organic açaí in the Brazilian Amazon. This year we have embarked on a thorough review of all packaging we use in order to improve and lessen our environmental footprint, while remaining mindful to still deliver the quality products you expect from Sambazon.

We are looking at materials as well as examining the environmental methods employed by our suppliers and production partners, such as their use of alternative or renewable energy sources, and the methods of transportation they employ and the distances required to produce and bring the materials to us.

Here’s an overview of what we are doing with our current materials:

• Bottles: Our bottles contain part post industrial recycle content (PIR), unused plastic from production that is then reground and reused in the production of our bottles. While that’s a great step, we’re examining new and better substrates that use higher levels of recycled material while maintaining optimal quality and freshness for our products.



• Labels: The major environmental concern with standard labels is the volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) used in the printing and adhesive process. Our new Açaí Freeze Dried Powder labels use Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper with 30% post consumer recycled (PCR) material, vegetable based inks, and water based adhesives.



• Boxes: The public never really sees or handles the corrugated boxes that transport our juices, yet they are among the most recycled and recyclable in the industry. Now made from 86% PCR, our boxes are also printed with soy based inks and use water based adhesives.


• Pallet Shipping Materials: We are currently testing the use of 100% recycled high density polyethylene (HDPE, what #2 plastic is made from) instead of cardboard cornerboards for stability on our shipped pallets. Not only are these 100% recycled and recyclable, but they are also completely reusable.

As we strive to become truly ‘green’, due diligence is our main concern. There are many so-called environmentally friendly options that can be either misleading or in some cases more harmful. While we still have a long way to go, we promise to do our homework and only make changes that will truly make a positive impact. We have and will continue to change, upgrade and innovate, all with an eye to lowering our carbon footprint, increasing our environmental awareness and improving our sustainability standards.

-Keith Lord (Director of Sourcing)