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The objective was to evaluate the use of a microgreen system and very short UV-B radiation dose to obtain plant biomass as a source for phenol-enriched extracts with probable cosmetic and/or food uses. Quinoa seedlings, a native species of the Andes, of two different ages were used. The seedlings were irradiated with different doses of UV-B and then evaluated by quantifying indicators of oxidative damage. Also, the contents of phenolic compounds, photosynthetic pigments, antioxidant capacity, and sun protection factor were determined. The results showed that the youngest seedlings responded better to short UVB doses, increasing the content of soluble and insoluble phenols, without showing oxidative damage. These results were correlated with the greater antioxidant power of the extracts and an intermediate sun protection factor. We conclude that this species, grown in a microgreen system, is a promising alternative to obtain phenol-enriched extracts with possible use in formulations of natural sunscreens. In this sense, these results can serve as a starting point for optimization studies through the response surface methodology.

This article explores the spatial politics of Peru’s gastronomic revolution and corresponding efforts to territorialize Peruvian agricultural products by tracing the spatial dynamics of quinoa’s trajectory from highland dietary staple to coveted national food. Efforts to codify Peru’s national cuisine have involved mapping ingredients and dishes onto specific regions while dramatically reshaping agricultural production geographies and culinary topographies. Because of quinoa’s success as a high-value export crop, the Peruvian altiplano is no longer perceived as a landscape useful exclusively for livestock pasture and mining. Instead, it is imagined as agriculturally productive: the country’s quinoa heartland. At the same time, quinoa’s trajectory illuminates spatial contradictions in the gastronomic boom’s purported objectives and its tangible effects. The revalorization of quinoa led to a geographical expansion of its production outside the high Andes, undermining the spatially bound concepts of authenticity promoted by gastronomic leaders in Peru. Broadly, efforts to commercialize marginalized food products and their corresponding regions can at once reconfigure territorial discourses in important ways, reinforce long-standing geographical inequalities, and generate contestations of the geographic imaginaries of food and nation.

Se presentan los lineamientos y primeros resultados de las investigaciones que buscan contribuir al conocimiento de los paisajes históricos desde las prácticas sociales vinculadas a la flora en Antofagasta de la Sierra, Puna meridional argentina. De esta forma, se desarrolla la propuesta metodológica, que implica el análisis integral de los conjuntos arqueobotánicos y considera de manera situada a múltiples líneas de evidencia. Este enfoque está siendo aplicado en diversos sitios arqueológicos del área en un lapso temporal extenso que abarca el tránsito de cazadores-recolectores a sociedades agropastoriles (ca. 5000-1000 AP). En este marco, se exponen y discuten los resultados iniciales del estudio integral de carporrestos y antracorrestos obtenidos del sitio Peñas Chicas 1.1 Alero (ca. 4200-1500 AP), como caso de estudio, que permiten comenzar a explorar las relaciones entabladas por las sociedades puneñas con múltiples taxones nativos e incorporados al área con distintos propósitos, así como tradiciones en los modos de hacer de muy larga duración que alcanzan el presente.

Social issues and theoretical background: the sustainability of human societies depends on the intergenerational transmission of capital stocks, whether natural, social or economic. With ever more competition for economic resources, sustainability must increasingly focus on the mutual reinforcement of social and natural capital. This perspective is particularly relevant for peasant agriculture and producers, who are constantly at risk of social and economic exclusion, but whose social and natural capital remains important, though often underutilized, even by the peasants themselves. The concepts of commoning and social capital are useful for addressing these issues and activating biocultural heritage from an ethically inclusive sustainability perspective. Objective and methods: We seek to understand how peasants organize to collectively achieve goals of social and economic inclusion that could promote their sustainability and resilience in the face of economic constraints. Using field surveys and participatory action research, we analyzed the social, economic, and environmental factors that fostered the emergence and sustainability of producer organizations and their value chains. This was done in three peasant organizations in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile, whose common starting point is the valorization of traditional quinoa grain, but which differ greatly in terms of size, internal dynamics and organizational trajectories. Results: The successes and challenges of the social innovations implemented in the three cases studied provide lessons on how farmers can mobilize their social capital and leverage the resources of their cultural and natural capital to achieve ethically inclusive sustainability. While some lessons remain context-specific, others appear to be independent of the size and place of organizations, and several demonstrate the importance of socio-ethical interactions cultivated both within organizations and with consumers.

Las carreteras que conectan los centros poblados de la ciudad de Puno en el Perú carecen de vías pavimentadas, la mayoría de las vías de conexión son trochas carrozables. Además, estas vías dificultan el desplazamiento de los vehículos de forma continua y segura debido a la presencia de huecos y deformaciones producto de la lluvia. Por tanto, el propósito de la presente investigación fue determinar cuán efectiva es la combinación de ceniza de quinua y cal en la estabilización de suelos. El procesamiento de las muestras y los datos fue utilizando metodología aplicada, diseño experimental puro y enfoque cuantitativo. Los resultados muestran una mejora en las características de los suelos cohesivos adicionando ceniza de quinua y cal. Con adición de 9 % de ceniza de quinua y 5 % de cal, se obtuvo una pequeña variación del límite líquido, del límite plástico y el índice de plasticidad en comparación con el suelo de fundación. En el caso de la densidad seca y el contenido de humedad tras el mismo análisis, se obtuvo una disminución del óptimo contenido de humedad al 9 % y un aumento de la densidad seca al 1,902 g/cm3. El CBR aumentó alcanzando valores de 32,0 % al 100 % la densidad seca y al 95 % la densidad seca, mostró un valor de 25,6 %. Se concluye que existe una mejora de las propiedades mecánicas del suelo con la adición de ceniza de quinua y cal.

Quinoa is a traditional food grain that originated in the Peruvian Andean region. The United Nations declared 2013 to be the International Year of Quinoa (iyq). This official launch had a great impact around the world. On the contrary, it had minor impact on the consumption of quinoa in Peru, which remained relatively steady in the following years. However, the covid-19 pandemic raised concerns about nutrition and health among consumers. Therefore, this study seeks to analyze quinoa consumption in Peru during the covid-19 pandemic. Primary data were collected between September 2020 and August 2021 in Lima Metropolitan Area, Peru. Exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotation was performed for data analysis, and logistic binomial analysis was then conducted to consolidate the hypothesis of this study. The main outcomes identified were that (i) current quinoa consumers in Peru ate quinoa even before the iyq; (ii) consumers who are concerned about their health and nutrition needs increased quinoa consumption during the pandemic; (iii) women showed a higher probability of daily to weekly trend in quinoa consumption; and (iv) people with the highest income have more probability of purchasing food at supermarkets than those who earn less. The findings of this study can shed some light on consumers’ expectations and perceptions regarding quinoa consumption behavior during covid-19.

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is a halophytic, pseudocereal crop, which has a richer nutritional value than other major cereals and is highly resistant to multiple abiotic stresses. In this study, the germination characteristics, morphological, physiological and biochemical changes of three contrasting quinoa cultivars under drought stress were compared. The results indicated that ‘Chaidamuhong’ and ‘Gongzha No.3’ showed stronger drought tolerance than ‘Qingli No.1’. This was mainly manifest in seed germination index, activity of antioxidant enzymes, cell membrane damage and morphological changes. We speculate that the increase in the activity of many antioxidant enzymes and the lower stomatal density make ‘Chaidamuhong’ and ‘Gongzha No.3’ superior in release of reactive oxygen species and water retention than ‘Qingli No.1’, thus reducing the degree of cell damage, and improving drought resistance.