Guayusa is grown on small family farms and hand-picked by local farmers from the rich soil of the Amazon Rainforest. It serves to not only make a difference in the lives of Ecuadorians through income generation, but also helps conserve the rainforest.
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We at Nightwatch will always make sure the leaves are organically grown and grown in the shade, so it’s protected from intense sun and rooted in the rich ecosystem of the rainforest. Also it’s being grown with other food, fruits, timber and medical plants to create bio diverse and ecologically healthy agricultural plots that allow local farmers to thrive and generate a sustainable livelihood for the community. At Nightwatch professionals, such as our phytologist, a plant scientist, educate the farmers about how to use their plants in the best possible way and also how to make sure not to spoil land for the cultivation of the guayusa.
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Besides our own input directly to the farmers, we also invest in foundations that protect the forest of deforestation. One example of a foundation we support is the Green Matters foundation. They aim to promote the preservation of the language, culture, environment, nature, traditions, knowledge of medicinal plants and small communities around the world, and aim to develop these communities at micro level, more specifically by setting up small-scale companies and developing sustainable agriculture and also by purchasing land and plantings trees.