05/11/2019
Yerba mate - Ilex paraguariensis
Yerba mate was first cultivated and used by the indigenous Guaraní people and in some Tupí communities in southern Brazil, prior to European colonization. Yerba mate can be found in various energy drinks on the market, as well as being sold as a bottled or canned iced tea.
Yerba mate translates to "mate herb", where mate is originally from the Quechua mati, a complex word with multiple meanings. Mati means "container for a drink", "infusion of an herb", as well as "gourd".
This plant is most popular in Paraguay and Uruguay, where people are seen walking the streets carrying the mate and termo (thermal vacuum flask) in their arms.
Mate consumption spread in the 17th century to the River Plate and from there to Argentina, Chile, Bolivia and Peru.This widespread consumption turned it into Paraguay's main commodity above other wares, such as to***co, and indigenous peoples labour was used to harvest wild stands.
In the mid-17th century, Jesuits managed to domesticate the plant and establish plantations in their Indian reductions in Misiones, Argentina, sparking severe competition with the Paraguayan harvesters of wild stands. After their expulsion in the 1770s, their plantations fell into decay, as did their domestication secrets. The industry continued to be of prime importance for the Paraguayan economy after independence, but development in benefit of the Paraguayan state halted after the War of the Triple Alliance (1864–1870) that devastated the country both economically and demographically. Some regions with mate plantations in Paraguay became Argentine territory.
Brazil then became the largest producer of mate. In Brazilian and Argentine projects in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the plant was domesticated once again, opening the way for plantation systems. When Brazilian entrepreneurs turned their attention to coffee in the 1930s, Argentina, which had long been the prime consumer, took over as the largest producer, resurrecting the economy in Misiones Province, where the Jesuits had once had most of their plantations. For years, the status of largest producer shifted between Brazil and Argentina.
Sorry for the long text ! but what a curious history..
Good night ~ Goji Infusionsi
