Natural Colorants

Achiote, also known as annatto, is a tree native to South America that has been used as a natural colorant since pre-Columbian times. Achiote grows well on degraded pastureland, with high potential to increase farmer income and ecosystem resilience overall. To create new opportunities for farmers, we are working with achiote distributors in the multibillion dollar natural colorants market to connect them to local farmers. Aliados is partnering with a global leader in the achiote supply chain, to establish a 30-hectare pilot with smallholder farmers in the Ecuadorian amazon. We are currently undertaking an R&D project to asess the value chain dynamics and economics of establishing achiote as an income generating crop for indigenous communities in the Amazon.