Hello, this is my first post and I'd like to share curious information about what's happening for the fist time here in my country, Argentina: THE NATIONAL MATE DAY.

Mate is a typical infusion we drink at any time of the day, and is our partner in loneliness and with family and friends.

In January this year, the Congress enacted a law which reads that every November, 30Th, the National Mate Day will be commemorated.

The arguments for this law is the anniversary of birth of Andrés Guacarí y Artigas, former general commander of the Northeastern province of Misiones (1816-1818), who motivated the production and distribution of Yerba Mate.

Nowadays in Argentina, the statistics say that every person drinks, on average, 100 litres of Mate in a year.

In 2013, Mate has been declared as 'National Infusion'.

Properties

The National Institute of Yerba Mate underlined that in Argentina 'around 265 millions of kilos of Yerba Mate are consumed, which implies an annual consumption of 6.4 kg per person. Yerba Mate is present in more than the 90% of houses'.

'Its consumption contributes a vast number of poly-phenols, vitamin B, potassium, magnesium and xanthine, acting as antioxidant, helping the body to have more energy, making the cardiovascular system get better and stimulating the central nervous system'.

A little of history

Guaraníes aborigines used Yerba Mate's leaves as a drink, due to it was a ritual. It was even the common exchange money with other pre-Hispanic populations, such as Incas, Churrúas and Araucanos that, through the meadows, received Yerba handmade by Guaraníes.

Caá in the Guaraní language means "Yerba", but also means "Plant" and "Jungle". For Guaraníes, the Yerba tree was an excellence given by gods. Drinking the sap from its leaves was like drinking the jungle itself.

The conquerors learned from Guaraníes the use and virtues of Yerba Mate and made its consumption spread extraordinarily through an intense traffic from the origin zone to the entire Vice-royalty of Rio de la Plata.

Later, Jesuits introduced the farming to their little areas in the North of Argentina, the South of Paraguay and Southwest of Brazil. They were responsible of the recognition of the Yerba Mate by the civilized world, where it was known as "the Jesuits' tea"

Guaraníes enjoyed to get together around a "sacred fire" and was this legacy the one which arrived in our days, converting the round of Mate into a significant social rite.