BA Nerd Facts
Volume Two, March 4th, 2020
Unraveling the Potentials of Palm Sap: A Rich Past and a Promising Future
At the heart of Akos is the sustainably tapped palm sap. But, even before we embraced its potential, palm sap had an enduring and multifaceted history.
When you hear the word “sap”, you may remember a time you touched a tree's bark only to find your hand sticky, or maybe you conjure up the image from Jurassic Park where they discover how a mosquito entrapped in fossilized tree sap could lead to the resurrection of a T-Rex. No matter your experience with sap, we would like to escort you into its exciting future.
For generations, palm sap has been sustainably extracted from the Palmyra palm by skilled farmers, known as Palm Tappers, without causing any harm to the trees. As a result, this versatile liquid has been repurposed in numerous innovative ways.
Beverages: Freshly collected palm sap offers an exquisite flavor. Yet, if left in a humid jungle for a few hours, the natural sugars in the sap interact with wild yeast, and voilà, you have unintentionally brewed an alcoholic beverage. This fermented palm sap is known by various names around the world; "Tuba" in the Philippines, "Lagmi" in Algeria, "Kallu" in South India, "Koutoukuo" on the Ivory Coast, and "Tuk Thnot Choo" in Cambodia. This ancestral beverage, akin to an ancient beer, is believed to be among humanity's earliest encounters with alcohol.
Liquor: With a little bit of distillation and traditional knowledge, palm toddy can be transformed into palm liquor, providing a potent organic alcoholic beverage.
Vinegar: Ever wondered what happens when you forget to drink all your "Tuk thnot choo"? It metamorphoses into palm vinegar! By merely allowing the fermentation of the palm sap to proceed beyond its optimal drinkable stage, palm toddy eventually becomes an organic vinegar, a staple in Southeast Asian cooking!
Sugar: Today, a large chunk of harvested palm sap is converted into palm sugar. Using boil-off methods typically involving large woks and open flame fires, palm sap morphs into organic unrefined sugar. Ever relished the unique flavor in your Thai Iced Tea, or the sweetness that tempers the heat of your Penang curry? That's the magic of palm sugar.
Bio Fuel: For nearly a decade, remote Indonesian farms have been producing electricity and fueling their scooters purely with palm sap. Using specialized palm sap stills, farmers can convert sap into bio-ethanol. This kerosene-like product powers village generators, ushering remote forest tribes into an electrified future, all while working harmoniously with nature. Indeed, palm sap has a very "illuminating" future.
Thank you for reading,
- Mike
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