Gerard Brunton knew nothing about a fruit South Americans have been eating for centuries until his son fortuitously decided to take a gap year in the region.
The MD of Australian nut and dried fruit importer, GB-Commtrade, and his wife ended up visiting their son in Ecuador - a country he admits they knew little about.
Naturally drawn towards all things health inclined, Gerard met a man called David Bermeo, who gave him a taste of something the locals have been eating for centuries: Physalis Peruviana L, now dubbed "incaberries".
"We've been eating these for centuries back home," said David, who heads up exporter Terrafertil in South America.
He told OnFood on his recent tour of Australia that natives used incaberries for curing all sorts of ailments - itchy eyes, purifying the blood, and stomach problems.
This is largely due to the fruit having a high dose of antioxidants - more so than apples, broccoli, and the once-hyped superfood, goji berries - as well as a higher dose of potassium per 55g serving than a whole banana.
Fibre is also a selling point - in fact, incaberries have the highest amount of fibre compared to any common dried fruit, meaning the humble prune is up for some much tastier competition (incaberries taste great coated in chocolate).
The crops harvested for import are wild - grown in the high altitude regions of South America that are rich with volcanic soil - and completely organic.
David said that fair trade practices and supporting the locals as export demands grow are key, and that the interest from Gerard and the Australian market was having a "tremendous impact on the local communities of the Andes".
The dried fruit - which works well on its own, or can accompanied by cheese and white meat, and cooked with desserts - was completely unknown outside of South America until a few years ago.
Now it's being exported to over 20 countries, with a host of health food stores, green grocers and wholesalers across Australia picking them up.
Honest To Goodness was one of the first to pick the berry up in Australia, with spokesperson Amanda Powell saying they are "the real berry that loves you back".