Are Acai Berries Halal?

Let’s get into it.

What are Acai Berries?

Acai Berries is a fruit that grows wild a top palm trees found in the Amazon Rainforest. It is known for its antioxidant properties and numerous health benefits – I suppose this is the reason for the growing interest in the consumption of Acai Berries that raises the question of whether it is halal. Since Acai Berry is a fruit, it is halal for consumption in its natural form.

Plants (and fruits) are only haram for consumption if it is poisonous or harmful to one’s health. Seeing the multiple reports of the benefits of Acai Berry, I highly doubt that this is the case. Now that we know the source of Acai Berry, let’s move on to looking at how Acai Berries are sold in the market to see if there are any halal risks there.

What are the Halal Risks of consuming Acai Berry Products?

Acai Berries are available in the market for consumers in varying forms. You can buy the unprocessed fruit, in powder form, as a tablet, as a jam or pureé, or as part of a healthy bowl sold in cafes. Since processing is a huge concern when it comes to halal, it worth discussing the Halal Risks of all forms of the products if you’re thinking of consuming them.

• Acai Berries in Powder form / Tablet form
  Look at the labels and the ingredients list to see if there any halal risks posed when it is processed. Though, the risk for this is pretty low seeing that turn a fruit into a powder involves the process of dehydration and ‘removal’ of liquids rather than adding ingredients into the mixture. For supplements in capsule form – check that the capsule itself is not made from animal gelatin.

• Acai Juice
  The Halal Risk for Acai Juice is whether or not there are other ingredients added in the juice to alter its flavour. In the article referenced (9) below, some manufacturers add red wine and other ingredients to the acai berry juice for providing unique flavours. So, keep a lookout in the ingredients list of an Acai Juice to see if there are any alcoholic ingredients or flavourings added into it – these items pose a halal risk.

• Acai Berries as a jam
  Look the labels for potentially non-halal additives that might be used here to make the jam last longer. Also, see if any alcohol based flavourings are used in its production (often listed on the ingredients list on the packaging)

• Acai Berries as a Puree / sold in Cafés
  Seeing that Cafés have an interest in keeping their products fresh, it is very likely that they would order the fruits in its raw form, and then prepare it at the café whether in juice form or puree form with no added ingredients. If that’s the case, the the Acai Bowl would be halal for consumption, though it won’t hurt to just ask if they add wine in their food or juices. I’ve added a good café reference below that lists down all the ingredients they use for each of their menu items. So, I would purchase their food item without any doubts.

Fancy visiting a cafe that revolves around Acai ?

While jumping around from one site to another cross referencing information, I came across a cafe that makes super food bowls. Now that you know about Acai Berries in greater detail, you know what to look out for and what questions to ask, so why not give it a try! Cafe details below!

In conclusion, I would think that Acai Berry products have a low halal risk, and unless it is shown (through ingredients label or otherwise) that non-halal ingredients are used in the processing, I would be totally fine with consuming it. You may have a different opinion from me, and that’s totally fine 🙂

I hope this clarifies Acai Berries for you and allow you to make better decisions on halal for yourself. Just remember that it is entirely possible for food to be halal for consumption without being halal certified. However, for you to know for certain it is halal, you need to know for certain about what the food is, how it is made, and whether there are halal risks involved.

Till the next article,

Jumaiyah.

References for this article:

1. http://www.thehalalfoundation.com/berries/

2. https://www.victoriahealth.com/editorial/facts-and-myths-about-acai-berry

3. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/benefits-of-acai-berries

4. http://www.project-acai.com/our-acai

5. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/acai/faq-20057794

6. https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/a47009/what-is-acai/

7. https://dollarsandsense.sg/heres-why-paying-10-for-acai-bowl-singapore-not-overpriced-superfruit/

8. http://www.nutritiousfruit.com/acai-berries.html

9. https://medium.com/@bombacai/how-acai-powder-organic-is-prepared-de713552e24

10. https://nuts.com/driedfruit/acai/powder.html