Quinoa: A Story of Origins, part 1
by Sarah Lecouffe Axtell
Popular literature in the media recounts the “discovery” of a densely nutritious pseudo-grain, once eaten by Andean civilizations long before the Inca Empire. This food is considered such an important crop for global food security that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) bestowed 2013 as the International Year of Quinoa (IYQ). This story of quinoa is very alluring. This version however leaves me wondering about the people who grew, ate and lived from quinoa and who continue to do so today. More broadly, what can we learn about its origins? And, where is quinoa going? The following report is an attempt to explore these questions.
Because indigenous plants are so little studied, the literature on them is frequently old, difficult to find, or available only locally (Nat'l Research Council, vii). To begin to understand the origins of quinoa I have focused one source; taking on the indigenous perspective. It is a narrated video animation focused on an Andean elder recounting the origins of quinoa to his close community. In the face of centuries of colonization the stories of indigenous foods live on through the people that continue to cultivate them. The second source is the most comprehensive document I have found on the topic; its focus is on quinoa research development for worldwide cultivation.
“Tradition has it that Aymara people... used to talk to the stars... and since that time it has been told that nearby Titicaca Lake... the fields started producing their first crops” (Marca Peru); these are the first words describing the origins of quinoa, a story told by an elder to a small community encircle around a fire. The people are unnamed characters and the production location is undefined. What is clear however if that this short video “El Origin de la Quinoa” produced by Marca Peru, intended to promote quinoa, Peru, and its indigenous peoples. The story goes on.
by Sarah Lecouffe Axtell
Popular literature in the media recounts the “discovery” of a densely nutritious pseudo-grain, once eaten by Andean civilizations long before the Inca Empire. This food is considered such an important crop for global food security that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) bestowed 2013 as the International Year of Quinoa (IYQ). This story of quinoa is very alluring. This version however leaves me wondering about the people who grew, ate and lived from quinoa and who continue to do so today. More broadly, what can we learn about its origins? And, where is quinoa going? The following report is an attempt to explore these questions.
Because indigenous plants are so little studied, the literature on them is frequently old, difficult to find, or available only locally (Nat'l Research Council, vii). To begin to understand the origins of quinoa I have focused one source; taking on the indigenous perspective. It is a narrated video animation focused on an Andean elder recounting the origins of quinoa to his close community. In the face of centuries of colonization the stories of indigenous foods live on through the people that continue to cultivate them. The second source is the most comprehensive document I have found on the topic; its focus is on quinoa research development for worldwide cultivation.
“Tradition has it that Aymara people... used to talk to the stars... and since that time it has been told that nearby Titicaca Lake... the fields started producing their first crops” (Marca Peru); these are the first words describing the origins of quinoa, a story told by an elder to a small community encircle around a fire. The people are unnamed characters and the production location is undefined. What is clear however if that this short video “El Origin de la Quinoa” produced by Marca Peru, intended to promote quinoa, Peru, and its indigenous peoples. The story goes on.