Getting to Know The Maca Team with CEO Mark Ament

We’ve gone into some detail in the past on the connection between eating well and shopping conscientiously. If you’re a health-conscious shopper, you know how important it is to be sure that you’re getting fresh, organic foods that have been sustainably harvested by farmers who were fairly compensated for their work. It’s not easy to find reliable retailers whose products meet all those requirements. Full disclosure on ingredients and processes isn’t enough - you should make some effort to learn who’s behind the online storefront. While you can discover quite a bit about The Maca Team and our values while browsing our website, we wanted to give you the opportunity to get to know more about our CEO Mark Ament, and about the work that goes into making The Maca Team a one-of-a-kind shop.

Who Is The Maca Team?

From Mark: “We have to attribute our success first and foremost to our cooperative of maca farmers in and around the traditional home of maca root, Junin Peru. We've been associated with this co-op for nearly 20 years. We chose to work with these particular farmers due to their dedication to growing maca in a traditional manner without the use of any chemicals, fertilizers, pesticides etc. Since those early days, we've paid above-market prices to the cooperative. We also maintain a great relationship with the people who support the cooperative in obtaining organic certifications and other compliances, as well as an excellent relationship with the processing facility in Peru for our products.

Our core team in the U.S. includes our packing and shipping department, our customer service team, and our marketing and outreach team. We run the business as an extended family. As the founder of THE MACA TEAM, I personally manage much of the marketing and content that our company uses to promote our high quality products. The customer service team is headed by my mom, and the shipping department is headed by my stepmother and stepsister.

Beyond that, we have several partnerships with companies that support our mission to share our maca products with the world. These include companies that focus on SEO, ads, affiliate management, compliance, fraud, tax management, packaging, and much more.

Finally, I consider our customers as vital members of THE MACA TEAM, as we are in business to serve them the best maca and best information about maca possible.”

Why Maca Root?

Mark: “I personally learned about maca root in the late 1990s at an event promoting raw food. I purchased some there and after about 3-4 weeks of taking it noticed that my energy had increased and my depression had lessened.

As to the question of choosing to invest in a then little-known health food, I've always been interested in sharing products and information that helps people. Maca is a great fit since it indeed helps people on a variety of levels.”

Why Peruvian Maca?

While today maca is grown (with limited success) in other parts of the world, it’s first and foremost a historically-significant protected resource in its native Peru.

Mark: “Maca root is native the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia. Its origin is considered to be in and around the lake Junin area at above 13000 feet. Over the past 30 years people have tried to grow maca in other high altitude regions around the world, but with very poor results. Either the root does not form properly or it doesn't form at all. And nutritionally, maca that is not from the Andes simply does not compare. For these reasons we only source and sell maca root grown traditionally in and around Junin, harvested by that aforementioned amazing cooperative of farmers that grows maca much as their ancestors have for 1000s of years.

What makes maca so special? It’s one of the most unique plants in the world in that it is an adaptogen, like ginseng. These types of plants or herbs help the body to adapt to stress and raise overall life force energy. Beyond that, maca is a nutritional powerhouse with nearly all amino acids, lots of bioavailable protein, several key minerals, and a few vitamins. Finally, maca contains unique nutrients called macaenes and macamides which are thought to support hormone balance." 

How Do We Take Our Maca?

Mark: “I personally use maca powder in my daily smoothie and take liquid maca extract during the afternoon. A few times a week I enjoy one of our superfood blends such as The Morning Motivator or Maca Blue.”

About Our Business

We've been in business for over 15 years now for one reason only: high quality, Peruvian grown maca root products simply work to support health and wellness. We have some customers who have ordered that entire time - one with over 200 orders! We continue to gain new customers as people learn about the benefits of maca root. And we tend to retain those customers because of our 100% focus on maca. We don't do other superfoods (even though Peru has some great ones!). Our passion is sharing the benefits of this humble yet amazing plant with the world.

If you have any more questions about our maca root products, we’d love to hear them! Don’t hesitate to Contact Us using our web form, or call us toll-free at 888-919-8616.

Enjoy the day!