Las Marías: sustainability and innovation behind the best yerba mate

Almost a hundred years ago Don Victor Navajas Centeno had an idea: to use the lands of “Las Marías”, a ranch in Corrientes, a province in Argentina, to plant the inaugural “Yerbal” (yerba mate plantation), maybe moved by the Paraná jungle where the Guaranies first started to make and take mate tea.

Don Victor managed to join the land with the town and its people for the venture that after practically a hundred years of tough work turned into the green paradise that Establecimiento Las Marías is nowadays.

The creative hand behind Taragüi yerba mate

After setting up the agricultural venture in Las Marías and developing the most austral yerba mate fields in the work, Don Victor established a new objective for himself: to take over the whole process of making yerba mate, from seed to packaging, so as to monitor and guarantee top quality from the beginning.

That way, in 1940 Yerba Taragüi reached the market, rapidly placing itself at the forefront of the producers. From then on, Establecimiento Las Marías is prominently the top yerba mate producer globally, while also being a significant source of employment and social services in the area.

Seal of quality and Innovation

Nowadays, Las Marías stands for a symbol of quality and sustainability with well-known as well as innovative products for the great community of Mate consumers: from the traditional presentation to mate tea bags, fine grinding, less dust, fruit tasting, to a ready-to-drink mate set.

An adventure in Yerba Mate Paradise

Over 40 thousand travellers visit Las Marías annually. This rich natural reserve blends industry and nature in thousands of acres of red land, green yerba mate fields and large Eucalyptus and pine rainforests. It is a fascinating tour where you can observe the calm coexistence of the community and the industry alongside the natural ecosystem, which includes domestic animals, lagoons and parks. 

Las Marías provides a free walking excursion in which the traveller can see the cultural background of the yerba mate, try several mate infusions and get inside the factory to know about the production and packaging process. There are also longer excursions to see every place specifically, and there is even the possibility of relishing one of the top culinary options in the area: the Taragüi Club.