Start Growing Bitter Melon (Sopropo) in Suriname

A unique investment opportunity!

Suriname is the perfect country to grow bitter melon (aka Bitter Gourd or Sopropo) in a natural way and produce tea, jams and ice cream with it.

Eating or drinking bitter melon (as tea) is great for people with diabetes, slow metabolism, high cholesterol levels, a weak immune system, digestive issues, or a risk of cancer.

What is Bitter Melon?

sopropo is a superfruit with antyoxidanten

Bitter melon (Momordica charantia) is a tropical vine that belongs to the gourd family.

It is closely related to zucchini, squash, pumpkin, and cucumber.

Bitter melon is cultivated around the world for its edible fruit.

In addition to its sharp bitter flavor and distinct appearance, bitter melon is associated with several impressive health benefits, which are all under review in science.

Product Characteristics

Bitter melons are 5 to 8 inches long. The wrinkled skin is light green, turning orange when ripe

At this ripe stage, the flesh becomes bitter, thus the name.

The fruit's inside has a pink or white layer of spongy pulp and bitter seeds--soaking or cooking the melon can help cut the bitter taste.

Use it in stews, stir fry, or steam for Asian-inspired cuisine. The fruit is nutrient-rich, especially in iron, calcium, potassium and beta carotene.

Bitter melon is available year-round from countries like the US and Mexico.

A crop will produce its first flush of fruit 50–70 days after planting.

Bitter Melon Market

The biggest import countries of bitter melon are the United States, United Kingdom and Germany.

The biggest exporters of bitter melon are India, Vietnam and China.

Until 2015 Suriname exported for about 10 million euro annually to the Netherlands.

Read a market forecast here.

Health Benefits Claims of Bitter Melon

The following health benefits of bitter melon are claimed:

Tradionally it used to treat diabetes, arthritis and cancer
With possibly high levels of ascorbic acid, bitter melon tea can be very helpful for stimulating the immune system. Vitamin C can increase the production [2] of white blood cells, and can also act as an antioxidant within the body, suppressing oxidative stress by neutralizing free radicals.
Momordica charantia supplementation offers a safe alternative to reducing pain and improving symptoms among the primary knee osteoarthritis patients while reducing the need for analgesia consumption. These beneficial effects can be seen as early as 3 months of supplementation.
Ratna Ray published a research online in Cell Communication and Signaling in October, building upon years of work, showing that bitter melon inhibits the replication of breast, prostate and head and neck cancer cells in a petri dish and in a mouse model. For instance, her 2018 paper found bitter melon reduced the incidence of tongue cancer in a mouse model and was the most cited paper of the year for the American Association for Cancer Research’s Cancer Prevention Research.
In the Cell Communication and Signaling paper, the research team of Ratna Ray chronicled the mechanism used by bitter melon to fight cancers of the mouth and tongue. In a nutshell, bitter melon adjusts certain molecules that are involved in the metabolic pathways that transport glucose and fat in the body, which are key targets to suppress the growth of oral cancer, eventually causing the cancer cells to die.

See the links below the page for scientific papers on these health claims.

Scientific Research

A lot of scientific research has been done concerning bitter melon.

In the links section you can read many scientific articles that have published proven positive results on the usage of bitter melon.

At the Anton De Kom University (AdeKUS) in Suriname, various professors and students are excited to start or continue their research on bitter melon.

AdeKUS

The Anton de Kom University in Suriname (AdeKUS) has various professors you can contact to learn more about growing bitter melon in Suriname:

You can contact the following people:

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Thew following publications from AdeKUS are available on bitter melon:

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Ministry of Agriculture

The Ministry of Agriculture in Suriname has various information to inform you about growing bitter melon in Suriname:

How to Grow Sopropo (Dutch)

Expertise

In Suriname there is a lot of practical knowledge on growing bitter melon.

Many local people are excited to welcome you and guide you in growing bitter melon

You can contact the following people:

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There is not yet an Bitter Melon Expertise Center in Suriname, but people are considering to start that up.

Entrepreneurs and Organizations

Contact entrepreneurs and organizations in Suriname to partner and start your journey growing bitter melon or investing in it.

You can contact the following entrepreneurs and organizations:

A. Mataw Impex, (Adjay Mataw)
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Here is an example of sopropo tea from Suriname.

Investing in Bitter Melon in Suriname

Suriname offer investors and entrepreneurs many opportunities in bitter melon.

The major opportunities are:

Growing bitter melon at small scale and large scale
Exporting fresh bitter melon to the US, EU, Caricom, Middle East, Africa and Asia (compliant to import regulations)
Producing Jams and Ice Creams
Support and do scientific research
Explore health care applications
Increase consumption of bitter melon in the US, EU, Caricon, Middle East, Africa and Asia

Bitter Melon Initiatives per District

This page aims to increase the number of initiatives, investments, production and export of bitter melon in Suriname.

Therefor below contacts in Suriname presented so that foreign entrepreneurs, investors, potential clients and students can contact them.

1. District Brokopondo

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2. District Commewijne

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3. District Coronie

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4. District Marowijne

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5. District Nickerie

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6. District Para

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7. District Paramaribo

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8. District Saramacca

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9. District Sipaliwni

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10. District Wanica

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Once, Suriname exported for 10 million euro annually to the Netherlands. There was even some export to Belgium and Germany.

Currently there is hardly production or export of bitter melon in Suriname.

Experts estimate roughly around 50 million euro export to the EU is realitiscally achievable if 100 medium sized farms would grow, process and export bitter melon (compliant to Global G.A.P)

Recipy for Salt Meat with Sopropo

In Suriname sopropo is added to many dished. For instancem in combination with salt meat and shrimps it is very tasty. You can also add Madame Jeanette pepper if you like it hot!

Ingredients

- 2 sopropos
- handful of dried shrimps
- piece of cooked salt meat
- 1/2 red onion
- 1/2 tomato
- 2 pieces of garlic
- a cup of chicken broth
- sweet soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar

Preparation

- Wash the dried shrimps and then soak them in a bowl of water for half an hour.
- Wash the sopropo and cut it lengthwise. Hollow out the soft interior with a spoon. Then cut each half in half again lengthwise and then into thin horizontal strips.
- Cut the cooked salt meat into small pieces.
- Drain the shrimp.
- Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a wok and add the salt meat and fry it for a while and then add the shrimp.
- After a few minutes the onion can be added, fry well.
- Add the garlic and (then the sliced tomato), the sugar and the stock cube.
- Add some sliced Madame Jeanette pepper if desired or let a whole pepper fry and stew.
- Add a dash of soy sauce.
- Then add the sliced sopropo and stir everything well. Let it simmer until the sopropo is cooked. If the moisture evaporates too quickly, add a little water in between.

* If you have simmered the pepper, you can cut off some pieces of the cooked pepper at the end and add just as much to the dish until it has the right spiciness. This prevents the dish from becoming too hot.

Export Challenges

When growing bitter melon in open air there are various chances of insects getting in the skin.

For this reason the EU has banned import of fresh Sopropo from some countries.

Commodity risk assessment of Momordica charantia fruits from Suriname (European Union)

Growing and exporting fresh bitter melon to the EU is not impossible, but it has to be done compliant to Global G.A.P.

A Surinamese entrepreneur found a solution in exporting frozen bitter melon to the Netherlands. Read the article in the links below

Superfoods and Antioxidants

Superfoods are foods — mostly plant-based but also some fish and dairy — that are thought to be nutritionally dense and thus good for one's health.

Blueberries, salmon, kale, acai and also sopropo are a few examples of foods that earn the superfood label.

Superfoods contain a variety of nutrients, such as antioxidants, which are thought to ward off cancer.

They also have healthy fats, thought to prevent heart disease; fiber, thought to prevent diabetes and digestive problems; and phytochemicals — the chemicals in plants responsible for deep colors and smells, which can have numerous health benefits.

Antioxidants are substances that can prevent or slow damage to cells caused by free radicals, unstable molecules that the body produces as a reaction to environmental and other pressures.

Some antioxidants are produced by the human body, but mostly they are found in plant foods.

They are natural molecules that help neutralize harmful free radicals in our bodies.