Quinoa - A Kind of Super Food?

Hey there guys :)

I actually didn’t intend to write about food again but then I talked to a friend of mine yesterday and he told me about his futile attempt to buy quinoa lately.

Qui-what? If that’s what you just thought, don’t worry – you’re not alone. On the other hand, if you were nodding your head knowingly, there’s a big chance you’re vegan. But I’ll come back to that later.

First, some info for all of you who’re no quinoa-experts yet:

Quinoa (pronounced ˈkiːnwaː) is a grain crop, or, putting it more precisely, a species of goosefoot. It is often compared to rice when in reality, it’s closest related to spinach, beet and tumbleweeds (crazy biology, huh?). To confuse us a little more, it’s often called a pseudocereal since it is not, like true cereal, a member of the grass family.

In the Andes, where it is still most common today, quinoa has been grown for more than 6000 years, making it one of the oldest cultivated plants of mankind. Only within the last decade, a considerable amount of the South American grain was exported to Europe and the U.S. The reason for this development lies in veganism.

But first, you need to know that quinoa is very rich in protein, amino acids, minerals (in particular iron and magnesium) and vitamins. What’s more, it lacks gluten and contains predominantly polyunsaturated fatty acids (the “good” kind of fat). Not bad, is it? All these factors – especially its high protein content – make quinoa the perfect food for vegans (and vegetarians) since they need to find alternative protein sources when going without animal products.  For the last decade, veganism has been on the rise, and so has been the consumption of quinoa in North American and European countries. Nowadays, it is in demand so much that traders in Germany ran out of supply; that’s also the reason why my friend couldn’t find any quinoa lately.

2013 was declared International Year of Quinoa by the United Nations (here’s an article on that topic). Scientists believe that quinoa could play an important role in providing food security and fighting world hunger. As the UNO put it, they wanted

to focus world attention on the role that quinoa's biodiversity and nutritional value play in providing food security and nutrition and in poverty eradication, in support of the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals including the Millennium Development Goals.

In addition to being very healthy, the quinoa plant is extremely robust, undemanding and altitude-hardy – it grows even 4000 meters above sea level. The combination of these two qualities is why quinoa is often called the world’s prospective super food. For example, U.S. American farmers have started growing quinoa in Ontario on a trial basis last year (you can read about that here).

And, believe it or not, there’s even a third advantage! Quinoa is mostly grown by small South American farmers. The increasing demand for their crops helps secure their survival and support South American economy.

So, is quinoa the absolute super food? Should we all immediately stop buying pasta and potatoes and rice and ask for nothing but quinoa from now on, in order to live healthier, help small farmers and, on top, combat world hunger?

I say no. And so do many other critical voices.

Quinoa is great, yes, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t use alternatives, too. Unfortunately, there are lots of downsides in consuming quinoa. Since the super crop has made it to world markets, it has been more financially beneficial for South American farmers to export it rather than selling it to their own people. Prices went up due to the high demand and therefore, many locals can’t afford buying quinoa anymore now. Another negative effect of the increased demand is that the high quantity cannot be produced in traditional ways anymore. Traditionally, the quinoa seeds had been planted in regions where llamas graze and naturally manure the fields. Now, there’s a rush to produce quinoa faster, which means: no more llamas and no more natural manure, as well as no more field rotation. As a result, the soil is extremely depleted and the delicate ecosystem is at risk. A last aspect you should think about before buying quinoa is that South America is not exactly around the corner from the European or North American supermarket where we finally purchase it. Is it really worth flying a product once around the world when we could as well buy food from our own regions, such as potatoes?

The more you think about it, the more complicated it gets. If you want some more profound information on the downsides, check out these two pages:

One Green Planet

The Guardian

 

So, once more: Is quinoa really a super food?

I’d say... yes and no. It depends. And it’s kind of an ethical dilemma. Quinoa definitely has great potential, but, as always, we need to take care how and to what extent we use that potential.

But what do you think? Does it sound like a super crop to you? Or do the dangers outweigh its advantages? I’d love to know! :D

See you, bye-bye :)