Quinoa's experimentation and production in the Mediterranean Region

Bazile Didier. 2021. Quinoa's experimentation and production in the Mediterranean Region. . Ministry of Environment Water and Agriculture. s.l. : Ministry of environment Water and Agriculture, Résumé, 3 p. International Workshop on the Future of Seawater Farming and Saline Agriculture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Arabie saoudite, 17 Novembre 2021/17 Novembre 2021.

Matériel d'accompagnement : 1 diaporama (22 vues)

Résumé : Biodiversity conservation is today a key global concern of the international community with the last (IPBES, IPCC, FAO) global assessments in 2019. This loss of biodiversity places our agriculture and our food at risk. In Latin America, the Andean altiplano is one of the centers of origin or "hot-spot" of the world's biodiversity. For thousands of years, the populations have interacted with the agroecosystems. Quinoa crop has evolved from a complex process of biological, geographical, climatic, social and cultural interactions that have determined its current high genetic diversity. The declaration by the United Nations General Assembly as “2013, the International Year of Quinoa” aimed to draw global attention to the role of quinoa's biodiversity and nutritional value in food security and poverty eradication, in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) knowns as neglected and underutilized species, was considered major crop used by the Pre-Colombian cultures in Latin America for centuries. As a consequence of the invasion and the conquest by the Spanish, cultivation and consumption of this crops were suppressed and thereafter only continued on a minor or local scale. Quinoa has been grown in the Andes for over 7,000 years. After centuries of neglect, the potential of quinoa was only rediscovered during the second half of the twentieth century. Following the International Year of Quinoa (IYQ) in 2013, the case of quinoa was highlighted with the potential to rapidly change its status from a minor to a major crop in the world agriculture, on basis of the role that quinoa's biodiversity and its high nutritional value can play in providing global food security. Compared to the major cereals for agriculture and world food (Wheat, Corn, Rice), quinoa has a much higher protein content (from 14 to 19%). But above all, it presents a good balance between all the Essential Amino Acids, with contents above the FAO recommendations for each of them. Much emphasis has been be placed on the quality of quinoa's proteins for its promotion and worldwide recognition, but its nutritional value is more global. The balanced structure of essential amino acids is one of the main characteristics of quinoa but not the only one. Quinoa grains contain a very high proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (especially omegas 3,6,9) that are essential for human growth and development (brain, muscles, retina). Vitamin E highly present, which is a collective term for tocopherols (α, β, γ and δ) and tocotrienols (α, β, γ and δ) with known biological activity, is essential for reproduction and growth of mammals including humans. The α-tocopherol in particular is a powerful antioxidant that prevents the oxidation of plant lipids, especially seeds. (to fight against cholesterol). It protects the body from cell damage that maintains a healthy immune system to protect against chronic diseases, such as heart disease and cancer. Quinoa is also very rich in many minerals, and it contains as much fiber as whole grains, useful to moderate the glycemic index of the meal. Vit B1 allows the production of energy from carbohydrates (sugars). Vitamin B9 or folic acid (also called folates) is essential for cell renewal and for the development of the fetus during pregnancy. The answer to healthy eating lies in the diversity cultivated by small-scale farmers in the Andes. Quinoa diversity, at a continental scale, has been associated with five main ecotypes: Highlands or Altiplano (Peru and Bolivia), Inter-Andean valleys (Colombia, Ecuador and Peru), Salt flats (Bolivia, Chile and Argentina), Tropical Yungas (Bolivia) and Coastal/Lowlands (Chile). Each of these ecotypes is associated with sub-centres of diversity that comes from the surroundings of the Lake Titicaca. And each one corresponds to specific conditions of altitude, latitude and soils and climatic conditions. Considering its origin in central and southern Chile, the sea level ecotype appears as the most adapted to Temperate and Mediterranean environments. With high attention to the Chilean germplasm, the number of quinoa producing countries has risen rapidly from 8 (in the 80') until 125 today. During the past thirty years, quinoa was tested in all the continents and nowadays, quinoa is cultivated in more than 125 countries. Quinoa globalization entails challenges to the countries of origin and these are important to consider for future development. Understanding this reality is fundamental to face the challenges of conserving local biodiversity, developing and promoting new varieties, and cooperating on plant genetic resources exchanges with inclusive processes towards fair benefits with Andean countries. I will present the different steps of quinoa development in the Mediterranean. Quinoa arrived first in the Southern part of Europe during the 90'. The project “American and European Test of Quinoa” was the first wide diffusion of quinoa worldwide and underlies the current global expansion of the crop. Field trials were established in several countries such as Spain, Italy and Greece through this first network of international cooperation for promotion of quinoa. Quinoa crop was tested as an alternative to cotton and tobacco cultivation. The increase of salinity and degraded lands were also a factor of adoption of quinoa crop. It also appeared in Morocco in 1999 as a rustic crop to fight against abiotic stresses for local crops. The second wave was observed before the International year of quinoa by some countries who wanted to benefit of the high nutritional value of the crop recognized by consumers of healthy and organic products. It offered new incomes to small-scale farmers through diversification of their cropping systems. Since 2014, all the countries around the Mediterranean Sea are testing or producing quinoa. The key factors for its development were the quinoa's high tolerance to salinity and resistance to drought. The Strong Interest of quinoa in the Mediterranean has too objectives : To help fight malnutrition & To help reduce poverty Because quinoa grains have high nutritional values, with all Essential Amino Acids, minerals, vitamins, etc, it is a rustic crop than can grows from sea level to over 4000 meters of altitude But today, First, New countries producers have difficulties for entering quinoa grains in their national markets. SECOND, Seed legislations at global level limit the access to quinoa genetic resources for testing the crop in new environments THIRD, The main objective of the trials is not clear for some countries. An objective of Adaptation from an existing commercial Variety differs completely from a strategy of Plant Breeding for developing new cultivars. Germplasm and experimental design for the trials may be adapted to the objectives. FOURTH, TRAINING BOTH FARMERS AND AGRICULTURAL ADVISORS is essential for developing a complete quinoa value chain. In conclusion, existence of commercial varieties facilitates access to seeds for quinoa testing but not to high genetic diversity for quinoa adaptation. Despite the immense quinoa genetic diversity, it is not currently used to the full due to lack of access. New strong relationships between institutions that can share their genetic material could be supported through research networks, respecting legal regulations on seeds. It is one of the objectives of the Global Collaborative Network on Quinoa (gcn-quinoa.org). Drought resistance, salinity tolerance and exceptional nutritional value are some of the advantages of quinoa to face the effects of climate change in agriculture. But access to genetic resources is necessary to allow the adaptation of an exotic species. Research plays a central role in the development of quinoa through international collaborations. But, it is necessary to be patient before expecting a commercial production.

Mots-clés libres : Mediterranean area, Quinoa, Dryland farming, Adaptation, Global changes

Auteurs et affiliations

• Bazile Didier, CIRAD-ES-UMR SENS (FRA) ORCID: 0000-0001-5617-9319

Source : Cirad-Agritrop (https://agritrop.cirad.fr/600244/)

Métriques

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