Kaa´guy porá

An Integrated Community, A Sacred Reserve

The Yevia Project is implemented in the south-southwest sector of the Yabotí Biosphere Reserve (subject to UNESCO's "Man and the Biosphere" program). This area, known as Kaa'guy Porá, covers approximately 19,000 hectares (200 km²) in the Guaraní Department, Municipality of El Soberbio, Misiones province.

Within this territory are the Guarani villages of Pindó Poty, Jejy, Jejy Miní, and Yryapy, and the rural colonies of La Flor, 2 de Abril, and Paraje La Bonita. In total, around 240 families of local inhabitants, including Ukrainians, Creoles, Germans, and Poles, and about 600 people from four Mbya Guarani communities, coexist and interact in this area.

TRIPLE IMPACT PROJECT

The YEVIA project is a nature-based solution that protects and restores ecosystems, addressing social challenges and enhancing both human well-being and biodiversity.

This initiative reflects our mission to develop local communities and conserve the Misiones jungle, through the creation of healthy, natural, and environmentally friendly products.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

At YEVIA, we specialize in the production of Stevia—a natural and healthy sweetener. We offer Stevia in its purest form: dried and ground leaves with no chemical additives, preserving all of its natural benefits.

We are currently expanding our crop diversity by introducing yerba mate and pitanga, and soon, mint and ginger. These new ingredients will be incorporated into our yerba mate blends, enriching the quality of our products and boosting regional economic development.

We are constantly seeking to innovate and expand into international markets through sustainable certifications and high value-added products, offering natural and healthy alternatives designed for conscious consumers.

SOCIAL IMPACT

The social impact of YEVIA is at the heart of our mission.

Our business model actively involves local communities, incorporating new families into the project, ensuring their direct access to markets under fair trade principles, and promoting sustainable practices.

From the Aponapó Rainforest Reserve, we foster training and access to knowledge in agroecology, conservation, restoration, and the sustainable use of biodiversity. We provide seedlings, technical training, and essential resources so that local residents and Indigenous communities of Kaa’guy Porá can autonomously manage their own productive plots. This approach empowers the local community—especially youth and women—creating opportunities that improve quality of life and help reduce forced migration due to lack of economic prospects.

We also promote environmental education and a connection with nature, raising awareness about the importance of conserving our ecosystems and securing a more sustainable future for the next generations.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Our commitment is to create products that care for both people’s health and the health of the planet.

At YEVIA, we rely on agroecological production and biodiversity conservation. We grow our stevia, yerba mate, and pitanga in the Aponapó Reserve, promoting crop diversification and sustainable practices that regenerate the soil, preserve local flora and fauna, and protect the Misiones rainforest.

We also support the transition to the use of bio-inputs and the elimination of agrochemicals, reducing environmental impact. Our packaging is biodegradable and made from FSC-certified recyclable materials.

Our Aponapó Rainforest Reserve manages a germplasm bank with 54 native tree species, producing around 10,000 trees annually. These trees are used for the reforestation of watersheds and agricultural landscapes, improving connectivity between forest fragments and restoring areas degraded by human activities, such as former tobacco fields.

THE ORIGIN OF YEVIA

We invite you to discover the origins of Yevia in the following video, which narrates the evolution of a visionary project born in 2015, originated as part of a sustainable agricultural production program implemented by Fundación Huellas para un Futuro.

History of the Yevia Project

PHASE I

Origin of the Yevia Project

2015-2016

Phase I of our project began in November 2015 and continued until November 2016.

We had the support of the New Zealand Embassy and technical assistance from INTA, as part of the Sustainable Agricultural Production Program implemented by the Fundación Huellas para un Futuro.

During this phase, we established a mother plant stevia cultivation in the Aponapó Rainforest Reserve—taking the first major step toward what is now YEVIA.

Our objective was clear: to reproduce and freely distribute stevia plants to local communities, promoting a sustainable and profitable agricultural practice. The initiative aimed to highlight the role of women in nursery work, provide young people with a development alternative to reduce forced migration, and begin replacing tobacco crops with stevia—thereby eliminating the use of agrochemicals and restoring the environment and watercourses through reforestation with native species.

PHASE II
Project Consolidation

2017-2018

Phase II of our project took place during 2017 and 2018, once again with the support of the New Zealand Embassy and funding from the National Ministry of Social Development.

In this stage, we aimed to strengthen and expand stevia propagation in order to quickly and efficiently increase the number of beneficiaries—reaching both local residents and Guaraní communities.

We also worked on improving the necessary infrastructure to sustain this growth:

We installed a drying facility
Built two storage sheds
Expanded our mother plant cultivation
Implemented irrigation systems
Equipped greenhouses and storage buildings in five regional schools, three of which are located in Guaraní communities

Every step taken during this phase was aimed at consolidating a profitable production model that also promotes respect for nature and creates development opportunities for the communities.

2019-2020

The 2019–2020 period was one of the most challenging times for our project.

The COVID-19 pandemic deeply disrupted the pace of our activities, causing delays in launching new initiatives and generating significant uncertainty within the communities. This situation also had a direct impact on production: we lost part of our established crops, and many families and beneficiaries, discouraged by the difficulties, chose to abandon their plantations.

Despite everything, we didn’t give up. In mid-2020, we achieved a key milestone: we officially registered the YEVIA brand with the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), registration number 3,701,272.

This step was crucial to safeguarding our identity and protecting our innovative concept of yerba mate with stevia—reaffirming our long-term vision and our commitment to keep growing, even in the face of adversity.

PHASE III

Commercialization

2021-2022

Phase III of our project was carried out during 2021–2022, with financial support from the New Zealand Embassy.

During this stage, we achieved two key objectives thanks to the funding received:

Infrastructure enclosure: We completed the enclosure of an existing shed, following blueprints approved and submitted to the Ministry of Public Health of Misiones. This upgrade was essential to meet food safety regulations.
Access to safe water: We carried out a water drilling operation that met all necessary sanitary requirements for the handling of food products, in compliance with the Argentine Food Code (C.A.A.).

These infrastructure improvements were critical for a major milestone:
They allowed us to obtain municipal authorization, register the Aponapó Facility in the National Registry of Food Establishments (R.N.E.), and register our stevia in the National Registry of Food Products (R.N.P.A.).

In this way, we ensured full compliance with all legal and food safety requirements established by ANMAT and SENASA, further strengthening the quality, growth, and integrity of YEVIA.

2022-2023

Launch of Yevia

During the 2022–2023 period, we took a major step: we officially launched YEVIA to the market.

We introduced our first products made from natural, agroecologically grown stevia, offering two options designed for different uses:

Whole stevia leaves: Ideal for infusions like mate, tea, coffee, juices, smoothies, or lemonades—providing natural sweetness with zero calories.
Powdered stevia leaves: Perfect for sweetening baked goods, pastries, desserts, and treats such as cakes, cookies, brownies, alfajores, and much more.

PHASE IV

Innovation and Expansion

2024-2025

In 2024, we took a decisive step in our journey: we launched our flagship product—yerba mate with stevia—the product we had dreamed of since the beginning, when we first registered the YEVIA brand. We are incredibly proud to have made this vision a reality after such a long journey.

That same year, we began the process of obtaining organic certification under European standards, through our certifier OIA (International Agricultural Organization). This certification represents much more than an international standard: it reflects our deep commitment to agroecological, sustainable production in harmony with the environment.

We began the transition of multiple crops in the Aponapó Rainforest Reserve, including:

Stevia (mother plants and industrial crops)
Yerba mate (productive plots)
Pitanga (natural forest and productive stands)
Pino taeda (reforestation plantations)
Agroecological nursery (stevia, pitanga, yerba mate, and native species)
Native forest monitoring plot (as part of our conservation and restoration strategy)

In August 2024, we achieved the official approval of pitanga leaves for infusion use in the Argentine Food Code (C.A.A.). This milestone was made possible thanks to the process we initiated before CONAL (National Food Commission) in 2022.

In February 2025, we fulfilled another dream: we completed our first export, bringing our yerba mate with stevia to New Zealand—once again thanks to the support of the New Zealand Embassy in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, which has supported us since the beginning. Our yerba is now available at Pachamama Latino Store.

In April 2025, we launched the first and only yerba mate with pitanga on the market.