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Ayahuasca Conservation Practices Among Indigenous Peoples and Religious Institutions in Brazil
Across the world, the expansion of ayahuasca have brought renewed attention to the sustainability of Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis. While ayahuasca churches such as Santo Daime and União do Vegetal have long emphasized close relationships with nature through forest management, reforestation, and cultivation initiatives, Indigenous peoples in Acre, including Yawanawa, Noke Koi, and Puyanawa, have begun shifting from reliance on wild-harvested plants to organized cultivation projects that respond to increasing local and global demand. This set of movements show that Indigenous and religious communities are actively negotiating environmental pressures, adopting cultivation practices, and building institutional responses, to ensure the long-term availability of the vine. At the same time, rising international interest, growing numbers of retreats, and regional commodification create conditions in which sustainability cannot be taken for granted.
“Indigenous and religious communities are actively negotiating environmental pressures, adopting cultivation practices, and building institutional responses to ensure the long-term availability of the vine.”
Indigenous Responses: Pathways to Sustainability
The brief considerations I will make are mostly the result of my long-term affiliation to Sociedade Panteísta Ayahuasca (SPA) 2008-2024, a self-sustainable group located in the northeast of Brasil, and from Santo Daime, institutions where I have either coordinated or participated in feitios, community works of plant propagation—and from my work as anthropologist with Varinawa Noke Koi (2018-2025), through socio-environmental projects, while in parallel fostering the self-sustainability of a recently founded association and center dedicated to organizing festivals and retreats. Last, but not least, from my barefoot botanist experience and documentation.
During recent travels, I have seen a shift compared to 2014. Back then most Indigenous people were relying on wild plants from within the territory and locals producers of ayahuasca who also rely on wild vines. Today, it is clear that communities in Acre are taking proactive steps to cultivate the plants. For Yawanawa and Noke Koi these initiatives are, in fact, a necessary critical shift from relying on wild-harvested plants to establishing cultivation practices that can meet both local and global demand without depleting wild resources.
One notable example is the Yawanawa people in Acre. In 2016, for four weeks, I accompanied Nixiwaka Yawanawa on a trip up Gregorio river, and we went to a place now known as Aldeia Sagrada. He showed me a place with natural occurrence of kawa and mentioned his plans to move to live there and design a garden to cultivate all types of native plants from Yawanawa culture. They carried on beginning with the creation of an area of nursery for the plants. Now it is a successful project with many plants that are needed to reach the demand and which promote community engagement in caring and learning about them.
Similarly, the Puyanawa have begun to cultivate the plants used in the preparation of ayahuasca. In 2018, during the Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference, Puwe described an inter-community alliance in which Ashaninka leaders Benki and Francisco Piyãko supported the introduction and development of these cultivars among the Puyanawa. Both Puwe and chief Joel Puyanawa emphasized that this initiative is not only aimed at strengthening the community’s self-sufficiency but also at responding to the growing demand generated by the increasing interest of foreign visitors.
These initiatives are already thriving, though the plants require several years to grow before they can be harvested; a determinant step toward reducing dependence on wild-harvested plants has been made. Also in 2019, with the Varinawa, during the foundation of our association and opening of the new village, part of our project included the cultivation of kawa and uni in nearby areas of where the kupixawa and hosting houses were later built. All these initiatives were driven by the recognition that increasing demand for ayahuasca requires new approaches to ensure the availability of the plants. Now in 2025, the foundation we started during my Ph.D. years has approved a third project in which the Varinawa Sociocultural Association reaffirms its collective commitment to sustainability and to the conservation of caapi. This current project involves the cultivation of a thousand uni (caapi) and kawa (viridis) plants in the surroundings of the cultural center constructed between 2019-25. We were supported by Santo Daime church of rio Croa. Right now, all the caapi has been planted, “assuring that future generations will have access to our sacred medicine, because our Association also works for the future generation, for the community’s wellbeing,” said Metsá Varinawa.
A similar initiative is being carried out by Kamarati Kamanawa along the Gregório River, where some families develop agroforestry systems around their villages. Due to the increasing demand, they are now expanding their cultivation areas. Like others research interlocutors, Kamarati, who is responsible for festivals and travels abroad, reports a growing local scarcity of these species of natural occurrence and emphasizes the need to ensure their cultivation and sustainable use. As he explained, “You see, people are taking a lot from the forest everywhere. Just the other day I met someone from the Liberdade River who told me he had found three vines; he had already sold one and was trying to sell me another.” Kamarati also referred to a well-known ayahuasquero, who is known to produce thousands of liters of brew from wild-harvested plants, contributing, according to close local accounts, to the difficulty of finding vines in that region.
In addition to Indigenous communities’ efforts, larger ayahuasca-based religious institutions like Santo Daime, União do Vegetal, and few other groups grow their own plants, not having the need to rely on wild populations. However, while these efforts are sufficient for these communities, they are not intended or sufficient to meet an astronomical global demand that arises in the New Age contemporary movement. From 2014 to 2025, the number of festivals and retreats occurring in Indigenous territories and elsewhere increased significantly.
It is within this wider panorama that the environmental practices of Santo Daime and União do Vegetal gain relevance, as they provide an important comparative framework for understanding how different groups engage with forest management and sustainability to attend to their own needs to maintain and expand their spiritual practices.
Discover the Indigenous Reciprocity Initiative of the Americas
Institutional Sustainability Frameworks in Santo Daime
To discuss the sustainability of ayahuasca religious groups in Brazil, I primarily observed conservation and environmental preservation practices in different regions of the country, noting the behavior and adaptation of plant species to different biomes and climatic conditions. It is important to emphasize that these groups develop a close relationship with nature. This close bond has been observed since the origins of these religions, such as the founding of the first Santo Daime community, called “Alto Santo,” located in the rural area of the city of Rio Branco, in Acre, which provided socio-environmental development for rural communities in the Amazon, while also preserving ecosystems. Subsequently, with the expansion of the groups to other states and regions of the country, it is possible to observe how their territorial management is reflected in the preservation of forests. In addition, I also observed the adoption of conservation techniques in the planting and harvesting of plants, and in the production of the beverage. Thus, I see connections between the practices adopted by members of these religions and the environmental movement, observing the sustainability of the phenomenon.
In my research, I conducted fieldwork in three Santo Daime churches located in the North, Southeast, and South of the country. The leaders of these organizations, as well as their members, were interviewed while participating in events where ayahuasca is produced and in rituals where it is consumed.
To analyze the interface between ayahuasca religions and environmentalism, I will first talk about the ecosystems present on the properties where the groups are located. Forest preservation is observed in the Santo Daime churches I visited. The church located in the state of São Paulo has about 10 hectares and a vegetation cover rate of 95%. The church located in the state of Paraná has about 16 hectares, with 14 hectares of native forest and 1 hectare formed by an agroforestry system, resulting in 94% vegetation cover. The church in the state of Acre also has two hectares of native vegetation. This shows a connection between ecosystem preservation and the presence of the groups in the territories.
The groups also work to restore ecosystems. When I visited the São Paulo church, I observed that the property consisted of degraded pastures and deforested areas used for agriculture, but with the church’s relocation to that site, reforestation activities were initiated, coordinated by the leader and church members. This resulted in an area of secondary forest where it is now possible to cultivate jagube and chacruna, contributing to the sustainability of this group.
“The expansion of ayahuasca use is generating greater consumption, and to meet this demand, we need to pay attention to the cultivation of the plant species that compose iT.”
The expansion of ayahuasca use is generating greater consumption, and to meet this demand, we need to pay attention to the cultivation of the plant species that compose it. I observed how the groups adopted techniques that ensured the conservation of these species. In terms of seedling production, this is done both through seeds donated by the churches and through vegetative reproduction. In the case of jagube, this type of reproduction is done through cuttings on the branches, while for chacruna both branches and mature leaves can be used. I observed these techniques during visits to Santo Daime churches.
Regarding the final cultivation, it is important to mention that these species require certain characteristics for their proper development. Jagube needs tree support, while chacruna needs shade. Forests are, therefore, the best environment for planting them. In search of ideal cultivation conditions, groups have planted jagube and chacruna in secondary forests (which are forests resulting from the regeneration of a deforested area) or in agroforestry systems (which consist of planting agricultural varieties among fruit or timber trees, among other plants, simulating a forest). During visits to churches in São Paulo and Acre, I observed the cultivation of plants in secondary forest, and in the church in Paraná I saw the cultivation of these plants in a one-hectare agroforestry system, along with organic food. Therefore, I see a clear connection between the methods and systems of jagube and chacruna cultivation and the preservation of forests in these churches.
These groups also adopt harvesting techniques that allow the regeneration of these plants. In my fieldwork, I observed that jagube is harvested leaving the root and part of the branches, or a part above the ground that allows for regrowth. After cutting, one of the members climbs the supporting tree to untangle it, trying to avoid damaging the jagube and the tree, while the others pull it down. Chacruna is harvested in a way that preserves the youngest leaves located at the ends of the branches, which allows for leaf renewal.
It is interesting to point out that I collected data showing some adaptive difficulties of these species in biomes different from the Amazon, where they are native. In the North region—in the Amazon biome—it was reported that the harvesting period for jagube can be around five years. In the Northeast Atlantic Forest, Sociedade Panteísta Ayahuasca can harvest in the vine in three to four years, although we emphasize it is necessary to take into consideration the specific environmental conditions for growth. In the Southeast and South, in the Atlantic Forest biome, it was reported that the maturation time for harvesting jagube can be about eight to ten years. Chacruna can be harvested over a period of about three years. This shows the adaptive difficulties of the plants to colder climates.
It was also reported by members of the São Paulo church that frosts occur during the colder periods of the year, resulting in significant damage and losses to the plants. The jagube ends up having its branches damaged, especially the thinner ones, which can dry out and die. Chacruna also suffers damage to its upper leaves, which are more exposed to frost; the leaves and branches dry out and die. After these events, the plants must be managed by pruning the damaged parts so that the plant can recover.
On the other hand, although members of ayahuasca religions have close contact with nature, this does not prevent us from observing negative environmental impacts from their practices. During my visits to Santo Daime churches, I observed negative impacts related to the adoption of inadequate techniques in the collection of plants. A member of the church in São Paulo reported that, in order to harvest a jagube vine that had been left unattended for a long time, it was necessary to tie the vine to a car with a rope, which, when moving, pulled the plant, causing damage to both the jagube and the tree that supported it. In addition, members of the organization in Acre stated that there is excessive exploitation of jagube and chacruna in their natural habitat, driven by the diversity of groups in the region. This exploitation, along with the reduction of forests caused by the advance of deforestation, has contributed to the decrease in the availability of these species in native forests.
Therefore, it is possible to understand an overview of conservation practices related to the sustainability of these groups in the country.
“Sustainability … flourishes on coordinated strategies of cultivation, conservation, and responsible management that can meet demand while protecting the ecological and social landscapes in which these plants groW.”
Concluding Reflections
Banisteriopsis caapi is not inherently endangered, and its biology, regenerative capacity, and expanding cultivation suggest resilience when managed responsibly. However, the reports of local scarcity in Acre, the pressure generated by the increasing of ceremonies and retreats, and the uneven adoption of sustainable harvesting techniques demonstrate that resilience does not equate to permanent availability. Indigenous associations such as the Yawanawa and Noke Koi have responded by establishing nurseries, agroforestry systems, and large-scale planting projects, while Santo Daime groups have incorporated forest preservation, seedling production, and conservation management techniques into their institutional frameworks. These efforts strengthen sustainability, yet they also reveal that without continued expansion of cultivation, increasing global demand tends to exceed the capacity of wild-harvested vines. Sustainability therefore flourishes on coordinated strategies of cultivation, conservation, and responsible management that can meet demand while protecting the ecological and social landscapes in which these plants grow.
Art by Michelle Velasco.
