Lost Crops: The Real Incan Gold
Friday 5 October, 2007
Superfood Gifts of the Ancients| It's no accident that some of the most accomplished civilizations have been raised on the finest fare Mother Nature has to offer. | |||
The ancient Incas were one of the most technologically advanced cultures of their time. Although we can't say their diet played a role in their greatness, we can be sure that the delicious, highly nutritious foods and herbs they cultivated offered many health benefits we can still enjoy today. An Ancient Bounty Although the Incan empire lasted a little less than 100 years, it encompassed at its height much of the Western half of the South American continent. | ![]() | ||
| Its remarkable infrastructure included an efficient, vast and extensive network of roadways, marked by messengers called chasquis who delivered news and information quickly through a series of checkpoints. The Incas did not have a written language, yet kept detailed historical records through a counting system of color-coded, knotted strings called quipu. They possessed so much gold that when the ruler Atahualpa was overthrown by Pizarro in 1532 and the seized Inca gold melted down into coins, the entire European economy was altered! Yet the Inca did not use their gold as currency; only for adornment and ceremonial purposes. Their real wealth was not in precious metals, but in healing and nourishing gifts from the earth. Expert cultivators, the Incan people terraced steep mountainsides to cultivate crops that are now well-known around the world—the most notable being the ubiquitous potato. | |||
![]() | Many of Peru's native crops possess dramatic health benefits which are just beginning to be known and researched. Many of these plants grow in remarkably high altitudes, sometimes over 10,000 feet! The high concentrations of nutrients and healing properties in native Andean foods helped assure its people a healthy adaptation to this extreme environment. By extension, many of these foods came to possess mystical or ritual significance and were seen as gifts from the deities. | ||
Healthy HeirloomsThe divine benefits of these foods are countless. Purple corn is still eaten by Peruvians for strength, often made into a nutritious beverage called chicha morada. This crop is rich in healthy antioxidant anthocyanins. In fact, purple corn contains even more antioxidant activity than blueberries! Another antioxidant-rich Inca crop is the camu-camu fruit—the most concentrated known plant source of vitamin C.Aji, or native chilies, are valued for their taste and nutritional benefits. Sweet, earthy-tasting Maca root boasts a traditional reputation for enhancing the libido and fertility, and its endocrine-enhancing properties have been documented in many scientific studies.Another sweet secret of the Peruvian underground is the Yacon tuber, a relative of the sunflower. Peruvian children still enjoy eating dried pieces of yacon as a treat—and since its sweetness comes from a natural, gut-flora-nourishing fiber called FOS (fructooligosaccharides), the root is not only digestion-enhancing, but also low-glycemic and low-carb. Yacon syrup is a convenient way to enjoy these sweet benefits.Although it is actually a seed, Quinoa was dubbed chisaya mama, or “mother of all grains” by the Incas. Its traditional reputation for promoting stamina is due to its ideal balance of amino acids, and it has some of the highest protein and iron content of any grain food! Quinoa is gluten-free and cleansing, as it promotes body alkalinity. The ancient Inca harvest is full of exotic, tasty and healthy natural treasures like the Goldenberries - otherwise known as cape gooseberries - tangy yellow, berries encased in husks like small tomatillos. They are rich in many vitamins, including A, C, B12, and the truly vital vitamin P (or bioflavonoids). Goldenberries also contain unusually high amounts (16%) of protein for a fruit. And the locally prized Lucuma fruit is creamy and sweet, similar in texture to sweet potatoes or custard, containing high levels of beta-carotene, niacin and iron.Vanishing Species, Vanishing Knowledge Many of these revered gifts are now in danger of being lost due to shortsighted cultivation techniques like slash-and-burn forest clearing and monocropping. High-profit crops such as the coca plant are often grown at the expense of other, more nutritional and locally-occurring plants. These detrimental agricultural methods, aimed at creating short-term profits, do not even contribute to long-term sustainability for Peru's economy or ancient botanical treasures—but are the cause of deforestation and lost diversity. In the last 15 years, Peru has lost an alarming 2 percent of its forest cover. Of the 17,144 species of vascular plants in Peru, almost 30% are native only to Peru. This striking figure emphasizes the urgent need to protect Peru's delicate ecosystems, home to so many rare and unique species of plants and animals. A Delicious ResponsibilityWe are lucky to live in an era of dawning health consciousness and respect for botanical diversity – a time when these ancient treasures can be appreciated, preserved, and enjoyed in new, exciting ways. In the dry southern deserts of Peru, two farms are taking part in this revolution. They are living miracles: examples of what is possible for this land, and for the planet itself. In two separate valleys, two families have transformed barren desert into lush organic oases, employing people from surrounding villages and towns in a joyful, family-like environment that produces some of the most delicious and nutritious natural foods on the planet. The Vico family specializes in a unique strain of olive, and the Bederskis grow everything from the finest Pecans in the world to one of the only organic varieties of Purple corn in Peru (along with lucuma and a seemingly endless stream of organic nursery trees, which they deliver all over the country).In the highlands of the mighty Andes, Maca is making a comeback, expanding from a few isolated patches to become a significant regional crop that is an extremely popular export, garnering world-wide attention and scientific interest for its remarkable healing properties. And on the other side of the Andes, in the lush blackwater basin of the Amazon, camu camu is being wild harvested, creating a significant income for Amazonian people, that helps to protect their rainforest home from the pressures of clear-cutting. Goldenberries have returned as well, cultivated as far north as Colombia, where their hardy, trailblazing ability is transforming soil and enriching lives, creating an income for a whole network of family farms dedicated to preserving the land, air, water, and rich biodiversity of this planet.All of these incredible crops, pure and carefully handled, are now available in our country, direct from the farmers, who receive a greater share of the profits from these products, in a program that goes beyond Fair Trade. Saving the world was never so delicious! | |||
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