Taxon: Euterpe oleracea Mart.

Summary

Genus:

Euterpe

Family:

Arecaceae (alt. Palmae)

Subfamily:

Arecoideae

Tribe:

Euterpeae

Nomen number:

16475

Place of publication:

Hist. nat. palm. 2:29, t. 28-30. 1824

Verified:

11/12/1996 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

14 (3 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Homotypic Synonym(s)
Catis martiana O. F. Cook

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Euterpe badiocarpa Barb. Rodr.

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Arkcoll, D. B. & C. R. Clemenet. 1989. Potential new food crops from the Amazon. In: G. E. Wickens et al., New crops for food and industry. In: Wickens, G. E. et al., eds., New crops for food and industry 157-158.
Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1963-1968. Flora of Java.
Boggan, J. et al. 1997. Checklist of the plants of the Guianas, ed. 2
Encke, F. et al. 1984. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 13. Auflage
Farr, E. R. et al., eds. 1979, 1986. Index nomina genericorum Note: 1979; suppl. 1986
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Glassman, S. F. 1972. A revision of B. E. Dahlgren's Index of American palms. Phanerog. Monogr. 6:1-294.
Govaerts, R. & J. Dransfield. 2005. World checklist of palms.
Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
Henderson, A. et al. 1995. Field guide to the palms of the Americas
Henderson, A. 1995. The palms of the Amazon Oxford University Press.
IPGRI. New World Fruits Database (on-line resource).
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Lorenzi, H. et al. 1996. Palmeiras no Brasil: nativas e exóticas
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Moore, H. E., Jr. 1963. An annotated checklist of cultivated palms. Principes 7:145.
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. 1995-. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. Note: Missouri Botanical Garden & Timber Press
Terrell, E. E. et al. 1986. Agricultural Handbook no. 505
Uhl, N. W. & J. Dransfield. 1987. Genera palmarum: a classification of palms based on the work of Harold E. Moore, Jr. 355, 357.
Villachica, H. 1996. Frutales y hortalizas promisorios de la amazonia. In: Secretaria Pro-Tempore, Tratado de Cooperacion Amazonica. 44:33-42.

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	assai palm	1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	cabbage palm	1	Terrell, E. E. et al. 1986. Agricultural Handbook no. 505
French	pinot	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	Kohlpalme	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Portuguese (Brazil)	açaí	2	Henderson, A. 1995. The palms of the Amazon Oxford University Press.
Portuguese (Brazil)	açaí-do-Pará	2	Lorenzi, H. et al. 1996. Palmeiras no Brasil: nativas e exóticas
Portuguese (Brazil)	açaizeiro	2	Henderson, A. 1995. The palms of the Amazon Oxford University Press.
Portuguese (Brazil)	palmiteiro	2	Lorenzi, H. et al. 1996. Palmeiras no Brasil: nativas e exóticas
Portuguese (Brazil)	palmito-açaí	2	Lorenzi, H. et al. 1996. Palmeiras no Brasil: nativas e exóticas
Portuguese (Brazil)	uaçaí	2	Lorenzi, H. et al. 1996. Palmeiras no Brasil: nativas e exóticas
Spanish	asaí	2	Villachica, H. 1996. Frutales y hortalizas promisorios de la amazonia. In: Secretaria Pro-Tempore, Tratado de Cooperacion Amazonica. 44:33-42.
Spanish	euterpe	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Swedish	para-assaipalm	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil	Amapá		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil	Maranhão		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil	Pará		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil	Tocantins		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Trinidad and Tobago	Trinidad		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Panama		e.	Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	French Guiana			Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Guyana			Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Suriname			Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Bolívar		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Delta Amacuro		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Sucre		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Antioquia		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Cauca		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Chocó		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Córdoba		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Nariño		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Santander		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia	Valle del Cauca		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador	Esmeraldas		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador	Pichincha		Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.
2	Cultivated					also cult.

Native
Southern America

CARIBBEAN: Trinidad and Tobago [Trinidad]
CENTRAL AMERICA: Panama (e.)
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela [Bolívar, Delta Amacuro, Sucre]
BRAZIL: Brazil [Amapá, Maranhão, Pará, Tocantins]
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Colombia [Antioquia, Cauca, Chocó, Córdoba, Nariño, Santander, Valle del Cauca], Ecuador [Esmeraldas, Pichincha]

Cultivated (also cult.)

Reference(s)

Henderson, A. & G. Galeano. 1996. Euterpe, Prestoea, and Neonicholsonia (Palmae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 72:36.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental		Henderson, A. 1995. The palms of the Amazon Oxford University Press.
Human food	beverage base		Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Human food	fruit		Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Human food	oil/fat		Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Human food	vegetable	main source of palmito	Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=16475. Accessed 12 May 2026.