Completed
Pique
Supports collective extraction of copaíba oil in the Unini River RESEX.
Location
Location
Community
The project beneficiaries were 60 members of COOMARU—men, women, and young extractivists who collected or worked in the processing of copaiba. These individuals lived in communities located mainly along the Unini River, an area encompassing three (03) Conservation Units, indirectly impacting around 200 families (900 people).
COOMARU was created in 2012 to enable the economic development of the Unini River. The Extractivist Pacts established between COOMARU and organizations and communities from other river basins strengthened regional economies and improved the commercial relations within the value chain.
Today, COOMARU is the main driver of the Brazil nut value chain along the Negro River, with great potential for income generation and socioeconomic development in the region. However, diversifying extractive production was fundamental to ensuring access to new markets and greater security in income generation for the communities.
In the case of copaiba, there was a demand for the opening of a community management trail to bring together producers from three (03) major communities into a multi-use trail, planned and structured with state-of-the-art equipment and methodologies for non-timber forest management.
Prior to the project, there were small, family-managed trails scattered along the river channel, where copaiba extraction took place. However, each family operated independently, and decentralized organization and planning was more difficult. Thus, the opening and implementation of a community trail contributed to strengthening the collective activities of the Unini River communities, as had occurred in the Brazil nut processing initiative.
Species
Copaíba (Copaifera sp.)
Copaíba is a native Amazonian tree, with over 28 species in the genus, 16 of which are endemic to Brazil.
Copaíba is managed in natural populations, through pre-established community or family trails. The oleoresin is extracted from the trunk using an auger at chest height down to the center of the stem. Once the resin appears, a tube is inserted into the hole, and the oil is collected using hoses connected to sanitized containers or PET bottles.
Copaíba (Copaifera spp.) has gained international recognition for the oil extracted from its trunk, which can be used for multiple purposes due to its anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and antimicrobial properties, as well as its function as a fragrance fixative.Copaíba (Copaifera spp.) has gained international recognition for the oil extracted from its trunk, which can be used for multiple purposes due to its anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and antimicrobial properties, as well as its function as a fragrance fixative.
Activities
Establish a planned harvesting trail (pique), with access infrastructure and production flow, operated collectively by COOMARU
Aerial imagery (UAV/drone) was used to map copaíba trees and conduct a topographic survey to plan collective harvesting trails.
Train extractors in sustainable copaíba oil harvesting on the Unini River
Extractors received training and exchanged knowledge on identification, management, and best practices for copaíba oil extraction, ensuring workforce qualification and the implementation of sustainable collection methods.
Produce 1,000 liters of oil and commercialize it through COOMARU
Equipment and material kits were provided for collection, storage, and transport of the oil, as well as for decanting and quality control. Commercialization was carried out by COOMARU in partnership with FVA, which provided administrative, accounting, commercial, and legal support to the cooperative. Initially, oil production took place experimentally in Novo Airão and Manaus.
Impact
1
planned and structured community collection trail (pique) operationalized by COOMARU.
20
extractors trained in managed copaíba oil collection.
1,000
liters of oil produced and commercialized by COOMARU.
Grupo Boticário
One of the world’s largest beauty groups, Grupo Boticário is a Brazilian company present in 50 countries. It owns the brands O Boticário, Eudora, Quem Disse, Berenice?; BeautyBox, Vult, O.u.i, Dr. JONES, Truss and the marketplace Beleza na Web, and also operates with licensed products such as Australian Gold and its B2B division. This interaction between different brands, active ingredients, platforms, a network of franchisees, representatives, distributors, retailers, sellers and suppliers forms Grupo Boticário’s beauty ecosystem, which also offers digital business management solutions for Brazilian retail through its brands Mooz, Casa Magalhães and GAVB. It has more than 15,000 direct employees and over 4,000 points of sale in 1,780 Brazilian cities.
Fundação Vitória Amazônica
A non-profit civil society organization that has worked for 30 years on socio-environmental innovation at different scales in the Amazon. It develops projects in research, social organization, education, socio-economic development and public policy, focusing on solving local and regional problems through sustainable initiatives aimed at building an alternative development model for the Amazon region.
