Graham Marsh in Balda Lupaxi
Right before leaving for Quito I asked Baltazar what problems Quinoa, as a product, had experienced in the past. How strange, I thought, that the main focus of my week here in the Chimborazo community of Balda Lupaxi had been on a crop that I had previously never seen or heard of. Baltazar, the local director of the community, replied that in the past the nutritional value of Quinoa was not fully appreciated, and therefore not reflected in its value on the market. The lack of demand in Ecuador , as well as high processing costs, meant that many farmers had little interest in growing the plant. Quinoa (Quinua in Spanish, Kinoa in Quechua) is a cereal that grows almost solely in the Andes of Ecuador, Bolivia and Peru . These days it is well known for its great nutritional value and especially high amounts of protein, although in the past the Incas were well aware of its strengths. Unfortunately so were the Spanish conquistors, who saw Quinoa as the source of the power of