Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) has
been a hot topic in the news lately. Globally, news articles boasted
frightening headlines: “The more you eat quinoa, the more you hurt Peruvians
and Bolivians” (Globe and Mail) or
“Can vegans stomach the unpalatable truth about quinoa?” (The Guardian). So how am I hurting people by eating my quinoa
salad?
Well, the newspapers argue that
with the huge rise in the price of quinoa, the grain is now too precious for
farmers to eat themselves. Instead they opt for less nutritious options such
as imported pasta or rice. Historically, quinoa has been a staple in the diet
of people in the Andes area, eaten by the Incas. It has high nutritional
content, a source of protein, fiber, calcium, and minerals and known to prevent
a number of diseases. In the past decade, the health benefits of quinoa have
spread to Western cultures and quinoa has been deemed a “miracle food.” The UN
Food and Agriculture Organization has even labeled 2013 the
“International Year of Quinoa.” This growing popularity has caused the price of
quinoa to rise three-fold since 2006.
Since the huge price increase, a couple
issues have arisen. First, subsistence farmers that have grown food in the same
area for centuries are now scrambling to get new land and maximize production
through intensification. Time
magazine reports:
Traditionally, quinoa fields covered
10% of this fragile ecosystem, llamas grazed on the rest. Now, llamas are being
sold to make room for crops, provoking a soil crisis since the cameloid's guano
is the undisputed best fertilizer for maintaining and restoring quinoa fields.
(Other options like sheep poop appear to encourage pests.)
The change to intensified farming is unsustainable and will
be damaging to the farmers in the long-term. Without input into the soils, the
soil will not be able to support a sustained level of growth for more than a
few years and will rapidly decline, causing a risk of a boom and bust for the
farmers.
As well, the high prices for quinoa mean many
farmers are no longer eating quinoa, as it is much too valuable to keep.
Rather, they eat imported food such as rice, pasta, and luxury items like Coca
Cola and candies. Although they are now able to get more variety of imported
foods, many people are already experiencing health concerns from a switch to a
high-sugar, low-nutrient diet.
So what should we do about it?
Well that’s where the controversy lies. Some people argue we should stop eating
it because it’s taking away from the well being of the Andes’ people. Well,
that doesn’t really seem like a solution to me.
Stop importing quinoa so that the local people can go back to eating it
since they have no other options? The rise in quinoa popularity can be a great
opportunity for the farmers if a sustainable approach is taken.
There is also additional risk
because with quinoa on the rise, farmers in other countries, including Canada,
have begun to grow quinoa. This creates a competitive market, that will likely
drive the price back down and farmers in the Andes will have to build an
advantage to stay in the market.
I’m not entirely sure what the
answer is, but not eating quinoa for the sake of farmers definitely doesn’t
make sense at all. What do you think should be done?
I suppose one option would be to buy quinoa that is grown in Canada. But do you know how readily available our own country's product is compared to places like Peru and Bolivia? And how does the price compare?
ReplyDeleteBuying Canadian quinoa is definitely one option but that still pushes the Andean farmers out of the market. If the issues could be addressed by the farmers to make it more economically and environmentally sustainable, perhaps that could work?
DeleteThe price right now for a 1 lb bag of is $5.00 for organic imported quinoa and $5.49 for Canadian quinoa ($6.99 if it's organic). Right now imported quinoa has the price advantage and the quinoa grown in the Andes is still organic.
Canadian quinoa is also growing a huge amount in Alberta and Saskatchewan because it's more valuable than wheat. It'll be interesting to see whether added Canadian competition will drive the price back down and how that will impact imported quinoa.
I don't think because it is necessarily grown in Canada means that it will impact Peruvian and Bolivian farmers. As demand steadily increases across the globe, we will also need to increase the supply of it or else the price will skyrocket even more.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree but I also think we need to be cautious with the growth because eventually the growth in demand is going to level out and possibly even decline if quinoa is just another health food fad. That could end up causing a huge drop in price. I feel like it's kind of a balancing act. We want growth to meet demand, but not too much in case of drop in demand
DeleteIf the key concern is the Peruvian and Bolivian farmer upsetting the eco balance by increasing their usage of non-traditional land for quinoa driven by higher quinoa prices and substituting cheaper foods in their diet, then it it the price differential between quinoa and their other food alternatives that must be re-established. Quinoa must be cheaper than the farmer's alternatives for them to start eating it themselves and to stop increasing their use of non-traditional land.
ReplyDeleteFree markets will set the price based on supply and demand. Since we can't control demand, then only increasing the supply will bring the price down to drive the Peruvian and Bolivian farmers back into eco balance. If Canada, or any other country, can quickly increase supply without significantly impacting the environment, then this may be the best net benefit for the environment.
So its not so much as to whether you should buy Canadian quinoa, its more a matter of getter the supply and demand back in balance to drive the price down and re-establish the Peruvian and Bolivian farmers economic balance, and thus eco balance.
How do you think would be the best way to get the supply and demand back in balance?
DeleteI found this entry very interesting because I have been reading about the impact of quinoa and am also a consumer of it, so I was debating how I would proceed in my own consumption. I also did not know that Canada has begun producing quinoa - I had read that some European countries attempted to grow it and failed, so I thought it might be the same here. I think I am still on the fence about my future consumption habits, but the price of destroying the ecosystems in South America is very high, and I am leaning towards alternatives. Darrelle - based on your price comparison and other research, have you come any closer to a conclusion for your own purposes?
ReplyDeleteWell for myself, I try to eat more locally if possible but I also keep price in mind since I am a student. Right now, I haven't yet been able to find Canadian quinoa in the grocery store. I've been told it's sold in some stores though and you can buy it online here:
Deletehttp://www.quinoa.com/store/3-canadian-quinoa
But I've just been buying the imported quinoa that is in the grocery stores. I do think I will continue to buy it for now because I don't know that alternatives are necessarily any better. For now I will just try to moderate my consumption and continue research to see if I can educate myself more.
I like Quinoa a lot. I just dont know how to make it perfectly fluffy type. Very informative blogpost.
ReplyDeleteYou may have come across this article, but just some "food for thought" on the potential benefits of quinoa... http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=44184&Cr=quinoa&Cr1=#.USVnzle6_Pe
ReplyDeleteConsidering all the benefits, quinoa definitely has a future beyond simply being a good-tasting and healthy food so we should be doing everything in our best interest to keep it around and keep its production and consumption sustainable. But still, the rising prices are a problem. I think this largely has to do with quinoa (not unlike many other healthy food options) becoming "trendy" in Western societies. Perhaps we should use less of it here in Canada, as we have conditions to grow numerous other crops, and let those in places with less crop variety and poor growing conditions make full use of quinoa (as quinoa can grow in arid conditions), and cultivate it in the traditional ways that does not involve mass production and export to foreign markets at an unsustainable rate. This might help drive down prices as well if we reduce our demand and allow traditional producers to gain a competitive advantage.
Thanks for that article Jordan! I've read some similar things but not that particular article. This raises some thoughts for me though. First, in the article, the Zero Hunger Challenge talks about its five objectives, two of which are "to build sustainable food systems" and "to double the productivity." If one aim is to make the practice sustainable, I don't see how it's possible to double the productivity at the same time. Even with adding nutrient inputs to the soils through fertilizers, it would not be possible to sustain double its normal productivity over the long term.
DeleteAnother interesting point will be how the market for quinoa is affected by the declaration of 2013 as the "Year of Quinoa." I imagine demand will rise even greater this year, which may cause more extreme effects.
I'm not sure I agree with Jordan. I don't think it's as simple as eating less quinoa here. For one, quinoa can be grown in Canada as mentioned above, and I expect the amount grown here will increase in response to this controversy. Increasing supply is another way to decrease price, but it still meets demand! However, I also disagree with the premise that decreasing prices is inherently good for Bolivian farmers; after all, the money from quinoa is part of their livelihood! I personally like the idea of government interventions, for example, Bolivia could subsidize locally sold quinoa. Unfortunately, this requires money, so its potential is limited, but I can't think of many other ways to satisfy all stakeholders.
DeleteAnd I agree that more research must be done about sustainable quinoa farming practices.