Preface

The seeds of this book took root in the summer of 2010, during the first year of our multilocation quinoa trials across three major climatic regions of Washington State. We began growing and evaluating quinoa thanks to generous funding from the Organic Farming Research Foundation, and growers around the state looked on with keen interest. In that first year we tested 44 varieties of quinoa sourced from almost as many diverse geographical locations and we were mildly surprised when only 12 of these actually produced seed in our northern latitude. That first year we were introduced to many of the ongoing challenges we continue to face 5 years later, including susceptibility to preharvest sprouting and downy mildew, photoperiod insensitivity, pollen sterilization resulting from high summer temperatures with little to no rainfall or supplemental irrigation, and the negative effects of aphid and lygus predation. We quickly realized that if quinoa were to become a successfully grown crop in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, it would require a concerted effort of a transdisciplinary cadre of scientists with a range of expertise, a forward-thinking and risk-taking group of innovative farmers, and a strong supporting cast of distributors, processors, and consumers. From that first year, with only one junior faculty and one undergraduate research intern collaborating with three farmers, the quinoa group at Washington State University has grown into diverse team of over 10 faculty and 10 graduate students, each addressing a key component of quinoa breeding, agronomy, sociology, entomology, or food science. This book is intended to lay the groundwork for the latest quinoa research worldwide and to assist faculty and students new to the crop to gain a foothold of understanding into quinoa genomics and breeding, global agronomy and production, and marketing.

In August 2013, Washington State University hosted the International Quinoa Research Symposium (IQRS). One hundred and sixty enthusiastic participants from 24 countries descended on Pullman, Washington and shared knowledge, questions, obstacles, observations, and ideas on the path forward during an intense, vibrant and thought-provoking 3 days of talks, field visits, poster sessions, and quinoa vodka infused social exploration. Many of the co-authors of the various chapters in this book were attendees and/or presenters at the IQRS, and the symposium provided a safe forum for the open discussion of ideas that have found their way into the chapters of this book. Symposium attendees who have contributed to this book include Didier Bazille, Juan Antonio Gonzalez, Luz Gomez Pando, Rick Jellen, Moses Maliro, Enrique Martinez (in absentia), Jeff Maughan, Sergio Núñez de Arco, Adam Peterson, Wilfredo Rojas, Geyang Wu, and co-editors Janet Matanguihan and Kevin Murphy.

Keynote speakers at the IQRS included Sven-Erik Jacobsen, renowned quinoa researcher from University of Copenhagen, Tania Santivanez from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and John McCamant, a long-time quinoa farmer and researcher from White Mountain Farms in Colorado, USA. Other esteemed presenters not mentioned included Daniel Bertero from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Morgan Gardner of Washington State University, Frank Morton of Wild Garden Seeds in Oregon, and Hassan Munir of the University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan, as well as numerous poster presentations. Finally, the highlight of the symposium for many attendees was the eloquent thoughts delivered by a group of five Bolivian farmers, who traveled to the United States for the first time to join in the international discussion on the many social and political aspects of quinoa cultivation.

This book reflects the many presentations and discussions that took place at the IQRS, and is intended to provide the reader with a comprehensive base knowledge of the current body of knowledge of the ever-expanding, global scientific research of quinoa. In Chapter 1, Gonzalez et al. provide a solid overview of quinoa as an Incan crop, primarily in Peru and Bolivia, now facing a diversity of global challenges. Chapter 2 follows up on this introduction by discussing the origin, domestication, diversification, and cultivation of quinoa from a Chilean perspective.

Chapter 3 by Garcia et al. encapsulates many of the wide-ranging agronomic and agroecological cultural practices of quinoa throughout the major growing regions of South America as a whole. This broad chapter provides a botanical and taxonomical description of quinoa, ecology and phytogeography of quinoa, and many tangible production practices across a wide range of climates, soils, and growing conditions that can be emulated in nontraditional growing regions around the world. Rambal et al. follow this with a description of the historical trends in quinoa yield in the southern Bolivian altiplano, including important lessons from climate and land-use projections in Chapter 4. Valoy et al. then discuss in Chapter 5 the potential of using natural enemies and chemical compounds in quinoa for biological control of pests. This chapter follows up on the agroecological themes discussed in Chapter 3, and compiles and elucidates a vast array of knowledge gained through previous research in this realm of quinoa science, and provides the thoughtful reader many potential ideas for new research in this direction.

In Chapter 6, Peruvian plant breeder Gomez-Pando describes the historical and modern context of quinoa breeding in the Andean regions. Beginning with the effect of farmer selection on seed color, dormancy, seed size and seed coat thickness, salt and drought tolerance, and adaptation to multiple and countless microclimates, Gomez-Pando then moves on to highlight the rise of modern quinoa breeding in the 1960s, the collection of quinoa genetic resources and in situ conservation, and the goals and methodology employed by current quinoa breeders.

Matanguihan et al. follow this with an in-depth discussion on the cytogenetics, genomic structure, and diversity of quinoa in Chapter 7. Information on close genetic relatives of Chenopodium quinoa are discussed, along with DNA-based molecular genetic tools and linkage maps which can facilitate and accelerate the transfer of exotic genes into C. quinoa. Also included in Chapter 7 is a review of phenotypic and genetic diversity studies which show that the genetic variability of quinoa has a spatial structure and distribution. The congruence between genetic differentiation and ecogeography suggests that quinoa all over the southern Andes may be undergoing similar processes of genetic differentiation. Not surprisingly, human activities, specifically seed exchange routes, have significantly affected the genetic structure of quinoa.

In Chapter 8, Rojas and Pinto discuss the ex-situ conservation of quinoa genetic resources from a Bolivian perspective. According to Rojas and Pinto, the Bolivian quinoa germplasm collection has the greatest diversity in the world, and this diversity represents the cultural importance of quinoa in Bolivian customs, indigenous consumption, and production. Chapter 8 also provides insight into the center of origin and diversity of quinoa, the geographical distribution of quinoa, and steps needed for the ex situ management and conservation of quinoa.

Chapters 9 and 10 discuss quinoa cultivation n two continents, Africa and North America, that are considered nontraditional quinoa production environments. In Chapter 9, Maliro and Guwela describe the necessity of stabilizing food security and alleviating malnutrition in Africa, and the potential for quinoa as a novel crop to make a positive contribution to these efforts. The goals of quinoa breeding in Africa and information from recent quinoa trials in Malawi and Kenya are discussed in an effort to address the challenges and considerations for future quinoa research in Africa. Key among these considerations is the acceptability of quinoa into African diets. In Chapter 10, Peterson and Murphy discuss quinoa introduction to the United States as a crop approximately 30 years ago, and the key breeding, research, and production events in the time period after its introduction. Recent research at Washington State University is highlighted in this chapter.

In Chapter 11, Wu describes the nutritional properties of quinoa that have played an important role in bringing the crop to worldwide attention. Finally, in a refreshing departure from the scientific writing in the previous chapters, Nuñez de Arco provides an insider's view into the marketing of quinoa in Chapter 12. Of particular interest are the personal descriptions and snapshots of the lives of smallholder farmers, of which an estimated 35,000 produce quinoa in Bolivia, who discuss their philosophy of marketing quinoa under the current fluctuations in the supply and demand of this increasingly popular crop.

This book is a reflection of the increasing importance of quinoa in the global market. The roster of contributors-from South America, Europe, Africa and North America-also reflects the expansion of quinoa from its origins to new production areas in the world. It was a pleasure to work with colleagues from countries who have grown quinoa for centuries, and with colleagues from countries which are growing quinoa for the first time. We are indebted to these authors for their willingness to share their expertise and for their cooperation in the process of shaping this book. It is our hope that this book will contribute to quinoa knowledge to benefit growers, students,...