Baobab: Your New Superfood Obsession

Imagine a self-preserving, powdered fruit that has 6x the Vitamin C content of an orange and is grown on a tree that is known as the “Tree of Life”. Presenting, Baobab - if you aren’t already obsessed with this superfood, let me introduce you!

First things first, how do you pronounce Baobab? Baobab is quite fun to say, and even more fun to hear others pronounce for the first time. To nail the pronunciation, say the word Baobab by using three syllables; phonetically it is spelt “bey-o-bob”.

Anthony and Mike, our founders, were first introduced to Baobab at the Natural Products Expo West show back in 2013. After learning every detail about this fruit from experts, they were instantly obsessed and knew they had to include this product in our whole foods and mighty ingredients protein bars.

The baobab fruit grows on trees indigenous to different regions of Africa and are often referred to as the “tree of life” or “upside down trees”. These trees have large, tall trunks will short root-like branches that project from the top (hence upside down tree). With their massive trunks, these trees are able to hold large amount of water and can survive extreme heat and drought conditions. Unlike most fruit that will fall off the tree when ripe, Baobab clings to the branches through ripeness for a 6-month period. During this period, the sun will turn this fruit’s skin into a hard, woody husk and its juicy pulp into a fine, white powder [1].

Baobab has an amazing nutritional profile. When compared at equal weights, Baobab has 6x the Vitamin C content of an orange, 2x the calcium content of milk, 5x the potassium content of a banana, and 6x the fiber content of whole grain bread [2]. Further, Baobab has an ORAC value, or antioxidant rating, that is 1.5x higher than that of Acai Berries and 1.2x higher than that of ground turmeric [3]. POW!

Not only does this fruit exceed expectations for what a superfood should be, Baobab further amazes with the fact that is preserves itself. Yes, that is right, the fruit powder alone that baobab produces has a shelf life of 3 years [1]. That’s 3 years without any chemical treatments or inorganic preservatives; are you obsessed yet?

Of course by consuming this superfood you are doing your health a huge favor, but did you know that when you consume Baobab containing products you are also supporting Baobab farmers? Baobab is typically grown in very rural and poor locations in which agriculture is the main source of income [4]. These locations typically suffer from severe droughts that can be especially tough on other crops. Since the Tree-of-Life is able to withstand major drought spells, Baobab can be a very reliable crop for African farmers.

Strong nutritional profile, self-preserving, supports farmers, the word “superfood” is almost too simple to describe Baobab. We use Baobab in all four of our protein bars, because mighty people deserve mighty ingredients and Baobab surely delivers.

Baobab, an absolutely justified superfood obsession - you can thank us later for the introduction.

References:

[1] https://aduna.com/pages/the-baobab-tree

[2] https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list

[3] https://www.superfoodly.com/orac-values/

[4] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/heike-pander/how-baobab-supports-the-p_b_9546266.html