Central and S. America: inferred tropical rain forest, to 2000 m; prefers heavy soil and where rainfall is 2500 mm or less; unknown wild. High yielding palms; fruits high in protein and carbohydrate, (3.4 tonne dry fruit/ha/yr; one plant yields up to 12 kg of fruit; generally eaten boiled and dried; edible seed kernel, tasting somewhat like coconut; edible heart; heart - of -palm vegetable crop often taken from thinnings, multi - stemmed so do not need to sacrifice whole plant; trunk for wood; thorny stems effective fence barrier.
Nutritional composition of pejibaye per 100 grams of edible portion is: Water - 36.4 - 60.9%, Fat - 3.10 - 8.17 g, Protein - 0.340 - 0.633 g, Ash - 0.72 - 1.64 g, Calcium - 8.9 - 40.4 mg, Iron - 0.85 - 2.25 mg, Phosphorous - 33.5 - 55.2 mg, Carotene - 0.290 - 2.760 mg, Thiamin - 0.037 -0.070 mg, Riboflavin - 0.099 - 0.154 mg, Niacin - 0.667 - 1.945 mg, Ascorbic acid - 14.8 - 41.4 mg
Widely cultivated in tropical America as forage for pigs and poultry. Propagation by seed or suckers; begins to bear fruit at 6 - 8 years and has an economic life of 75 years or more; at present there is a lack of superior cultivars for commercial plantations; fruit local product; hearts exported; multistemmed, usually spiny, suckering feather palm. Unimproved.